Future Group and Dole Packaged Foods announces distribution

Future Group and Dole Packaged Foods Worldwide, a global player in fresh and packaged fruit-based and vegetable products, on Wednesday announced a distribution partnership to expand the latter's presence in the country. Under the agreement, products of Dole's would be available at retail outlets of Future Group.

"India represents a very strategic market and it is going to be the third biggest consumer market in the world in the next few years. There is no way we can continue to be a global enterprise without having a strong presence in India," Dole Packaged Business global president Pier Luigi Sigismondi told reporters. "We do believe that globally we can double our business in the next five years, and that cannot happen without us playing a big role in India as well," he added.

He said there are three product categories -- healthy meals, healthy snacks, and healthy beverages, which will be launched by the end of December or by January. All the products will be 100 percent natural with no added sugar or artificial flavors, he said.

Sigismondi said initially Dole will be importing tropical fruits for the products from Southeast Asia. "As we build critical mass in the country, sometime middle of the next year, we will be producing locally. We are in the middle of strategic discussions with relevant industrial companies that would help us produce locally," he said.

Dole Packaged Foods Worldwide is a division of Dole International Holdings. It is the largest producers and marketers of high- quality fresh and packaged fruit-based products, with operations covering more than 70 countries around the world.