ITC To Acquire Spice Maker Sunrise Foods
ITC-Sunrise Foods Deal: ITC has entered into a share purchase agreement to acquire a 100 per cent equity in Sunrise Foods Private Limited.
by Sandeep Singh
Consumer goods major ITC has entered into a share purchase agreement to acquire a 100 per cent equity in Sunrise Foods Private Limited, a company primarily engaged in the business of spices under the trademark "Sunrise". In a regulatory filing on Sunday, ITC said the proposed acquisition is aligned with its strategy to rapidly scale up its FMCG or fast-moving consumer goods businesses. The deal is subject to the fulfillment of terms and conditions, ITC said. The deal comes as the country remains in the fourth phase of a nationwide lockdown with few exceptions to curb the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, which has crushed demand in an already-slowing economy and forced many businesses to trim their workforce.
ITC said the agreement was finalised along with related processes during the lockdown, "reflecting the company's agility and resilience in dealing with the new normal".
The proposed acquisition will augment ITC's product portfolio and "is aligned to ITC's aspiration to significantly scale up its Spices business and expand its footprint across the country".
ITC said its Aashirvaad range of spices is already a market leader in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. The company is one of the country's leading producers and exporters of high-quality food safe spices, ITC said.
In its filing to the BSE late on Sunday, ITC also said the proposed transaction is in line with its "philosophy of enhancing the competitiveness of agricultural value chains in India whilst making a meaningful contribution to enhancing farmer incomes".
On Friday, ITC shares had declined 1.35 per cent to end at Rs 186.35 apiece on the BSE, ahead of the announcement, in line with a 0.84 per cent fall in the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex index.
The markets remained shut on Monday for Id-Ul-Fitr (Ramzan Id).
The ITC stock is up 24.69 per cent since the beginning of the lockdown on March 25.