GURAGAON, INDIA — Cargill has signed an agreement with Wipro Ltd. to acquire the latter’s flagship brand Sunflower Vanaspati. The move is expected to strengthen Cargill’s existing portfolio of edible oil and vanaspati brands, and also to expand its market reach in India’s palm oil and derivatives market. Vanaspati is a hard fat.
Currently, Cargill produces and markets vanaspati locally under such brands as Rath, NatureFresh Purita, and Gemini. The company’s edible oil portfolio includes such brands as Nature Fresh, Sweekar and Gemini.
“Acquiring Sunflower Vanaspati underscores Cargill’s long-term commitment to growing our consumer food business in India,” said Siraj Chaudhry, chairman of Cargill India. “It is an excellent fit with our existing strong brand portfolio through which we serve a significant consumer base across the country.
“Sunflower Vanaspati is an iconic and trusted name associated with cooking delicious food, purity and goodness since 1949. It has since been positioned ‘as next to Desi Ghee’ in the household segment. We will build on its strong brand heritage, and consumers will benefit from Cargill’s commitment to quality, food safety, innovation and value. We will also leverage on our strong distribution network to expand to other markets.”
