Cargill India to expand corn unit in Karnataka

The maize cultivators in Karnataka can express joy as Cargill India is planning to expand its corn processing facility in the state by adding more product lines within a year, as per media reports.

Siraj Choudhary, Chairman of Cargill India informed that “the company is reported to begin manufacturing customized starches for industrial use, mostly textiles at its corn plant in Davangere. And for this, Cargill plans to make an extra investment of dollar 40 million”.

To recall, the company in its corn milling facility that was established in 2016 with an investment of dollar 100 million, produces liquid glucose, maltodextrin and starches. And these derivatives from corn are used in bakery products, confectioneries, baby food and animal nutrition products.

With the proposed expansion, the present production capacity of 800 tonnes per day will get increased to 1,200 tonnes per day. The company also plans to increase the corn sourcing from 2, 00,000 to 4, 00,000 tonnes after the expansion. According to Cargill sources, around 80% of its requirement from Karnataka and the remaining it takes from Andhra Pradesh and Bihar.

The company is also looking to increase the export of its corn products by 40%. About 24 per cent of the corn derivatives are exported to countries like Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam. Meanwhile, Cargill India also plans to purchase a 26 per cent stake in renewable energy companies for buying about 10 MW power to meet its daily energy demand.