Akshayakalpa Organic’s Expansion: New Dairy Plant to Open Near Chennai

Akshayakalpa Organic, a certified organic dairy company, will inaugurate a new plant near Chennai on January 26. It is the second facility of the company after the one in Karnataka. The plant at Pooriyampakkam in Chengalpet district, about 70 kilometres south of Chennai, will have an installed capacity to process 40,000 litre of organic dairy products every day. This includes 34,000 litre of fluid milk and 6,000 litre of curd.

Aims and Benefits

Shashi Kumar, CEO and co-founder, Akshayakalpa Organic, said the plant would process 4,000 litre of milk initially procured from 80 certified farms in Chengalpet district. “We have invested Rs 4 crore for establishing the plant. We will be scaling up production by 15,000-20,000 litre everyday over the next three to four years,” he said. He also said that the company might close the current financial year (FY24) with a revenue of Rs 300 crore and is looking at increasing the revenue to Rs 450 crore in FY25.

The company claims that its organic milk is free from antibiotics, hormones and pesticides and is rich in omega-3 fatty acids, calcium and protein. It also says that its farmers follow sustainable practices such as rainwater harvesting, biogas generation and organic farming. The company sells its products directly to consumers through its website and app, as well as through online platforms such as BigBasket and Amazon.

Future Plans

Akshayakalpa Organic is likely to achieve breakeven by March 2024, after posting losses for the past 13 years as it takes time to establish its credentials. With the commissioning of the new plant at Chengalpattu, the company hopes to process one lakh litres per day and cater to the markets of Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad. The company also plans to extend its presence to more tier-2 cities and introduce more milk-based products such as cheese, butter and ghee. It currently offers milk, curd, paneer and buttermilk in various flavours.

The company also aims to empower small farmers by providing them with training, technology and financial support. It has set up a model farm and R&D facility at Chengalpattu to showcase its best practices and innovations. The company has also partnered with NABARD and other banks to provide loans to farmers at low interest rates.