MANE KANCOR opened its biggest manufacturing facility in India on 20 May in Byadgi, Karnataka.
Built on 50 acres of land, the facility will generate direct and indirect employment for many people, including farmers. Jean Mane, MANE Group President, and Dr Geemon Korah, Executive Director and CEO of MANE KANCOR, were both in attendance at the opening event.
Jean Mane described the features of the new facility: “Our vision is to consolidate bulk production in a single location to simplify processes and ensure efficient management. Additionally, the project will quadruple the company’s production capacity and increase direct employment by 50%. Finally, the new facility will generate indirect employment opportunities for more than 10,000 people, including farmers across four states – Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Kerala. Interestingly, the new plant occupies just one-third of the land it sits on, making future expansion more likely.”
The new facility in Byadgi, the main growing belt for colourful chilli varieties, will fall under the Indian government’s Make-In-India programme. The continuous extraction facility and the modern technologies incorporated here will maximise process efficiency. Additionally, the facility contains a supercritical fluid extraction plant that uses carbon dioxide as an extraction medium. This is a much greener process and is organic compliant.
Dr Geemon Korah, MANE KANCOR Executive Director and CEO, made this statement at the inaugural event: “MANE KANCOR was the first company to set up a spice extraction unit in India back in 1969. Today, we have a new plant covering 150,000 square feet on 50 acres of land in Byadgi. The new plant supports both the development of our scientific manufacturing techniques and the addition of cutting-edge technologies to our business continuity strategy, thereby expanding our manufacturing potential. Our focus on segments such as natural colours, natural antioxidants, and personal care ingredients will thus be greatly enhanced.”
The completely eco-friendly site is part of the company’s strategy of moving manufacturing facilities closer to growing regions. In addition to chillies, the Byadgi facility can also process a wide variety of raw materials, including rosemary and other spices. The facility is also equipped with a zero-waste management system. All biomass generated during production is converted to fuel for boilers, and gas generated from effluent treatment is used in the canteen. The water from effluent treatment is used for irrigation purposes.
MANE KANCOR Ingredients Private Limited, formerly known as KANCOR Ingredients Limited, was founded in 1969, but its roots in the spice trade date back to 1857 in Kochi, the world’s spice capital. A forerunner in the field of spice extracts, MANE KANCOR is part of the French MANE Group, the fifth largest flavour and fragrance company in the world. The MANE Group invested over 200 million euros in the new facility. The expansion of the existing Byadgi unit by setting up a totally new green field project was announced during MANE KANCOR’s Golden Jubilee celebration in 2019. The new facility in Byadgi is now MANE KANCOR’s largest manufacturing site in India.