From 5,000 Rupees to Rs 8,700 Crore: How Two Brothers Built a Poultry Empire from Scratch
One of the poultry companies that was affected by the pandemic was Suguna Foods, a leading poultry company based in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. Suguna Foods lost a significant amount of revenue during the lockdown but it came back and made history. Soundararajan Bangarusamy, Chairman at Suguna Group
India is one of the largest consumers as well as producers of poultry products, and the industry has been thriving and growing exponentially for several decades. However, two brothers from Tamil Nadu recognized its potential nearly four decades ago.
In 1986, B Soundararajan and GB Sundararajan started Suguna Foods Private Limited in Coimbatore. The company initially traded in poultry-related equipment, healthcare products, feed, and chicks. After three years in the trading business, the brothers realized that many farmers were giving up farming due to the large credit gap in the market. They saw an opportunity to help these farmers by providing them with the resources they needed to raise chickens.
When they started the business, the poultry industry only had a turnover of Rs 400 crore. Today, it has grown to a turnover of Rs 45,000 crore and is growing at a rate of 15% year over year. However, breeding chickens is a technology-driven process and feed is capital-intensive. Managing over 18,000 farmers across the country with different cultures and languages is also a major challenge.
Suguna Foods’ unique business model of contract poultry farming and its success story have attracted international attention from organizations such as the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
The emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic had a profound impact on the global poultry industry, including in India. Many people feared that the virus could be transmitted through meat, especially poultry, leading to a decline in demand. The lockdown imposed in India further exacerbated the crisis.
Suguna Foods, like many other poultry companies, suffered a significant loss of revenue during the lockdown. However, the company took proactive measures to protect its employees and customers, implementing strict hygiene protocols and testing all chickens for the virus. Suguna Foods also launched marketing campaigns to reassure consumers about the safety of poultry products.
As a result of these efforts, Suguna Foods was able to gradually recover from the pandemic and return to pre-pandemic levels of sales. The company continues to expand its operations.
Stay updated with the latest news and subscribe to our newsletter today!