VKS Starting Broiler Processing Plant
VKS Exports, specialising in production and export of poultry and agro products, plans to start a broiler processing plant in Udumalpet with an investment of Rs. 25 crore. Ashwin Subramanian, its executive director, told that construction would start on July 9 and the plant would be ready for operation in January or February next year. The company currently handled about a lakh birds every week. With the establishment of the plant, it would need nearly three lakh birds. The capacity of the processing unit would be 3,000 birds an hour. Processed chicken would be mainly for the export markets which had a huge potential, especially in West Asian and African countries, Mr. Ashwin said. S. Shiva Kumar, Managing Director of the company, added that institutional buyers in the domestic market too were buying processed chicken now.
The Rs. 215 crore company had its egg exporting facilities in Namakkal and recently started “Farm Fresh Chicken”, a chain of retail outlets to sell live broiler birds. Three stores had been opened in Coimbatore and plans were afoot to start 20 outlets soon. Once the processing plant was commissioned, these outlets would start selling processed chicken too.
