[News Space=Reporter seungwon lee] Lotte is holding a ceremony to complete a new plant in India and is starting to attack the Indian market, which has the world's largest population of 1.4 billion. Since entering the Indian market in 2004 through Lotte Welfood, Lotte is currently operating two subsidiaries: Lotte India, a confectionery company, and Havmore, a ice cream company. Lotte Welfood's sales in India are expected to reach KRW 270 billion as of 2023.

Lotte Welfood held a completion ceremony for the new Havmore Pune plant in Pune, western India, on the 6th. The ceremony was attended by Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin, Lotte Food Group CEO Lee Young-koo, Lotte Welfood CEO Lee Chang-yeop, Lotte Holdings Future Growth Office Director Shin Yoo-yeol, Maharashtra State Chief Minister Fadnavis, and South Korean Ambassador to India Lee Sung-ho.

The completion ceremony included congratulatory remarks from the new chairman and the Maharashtra chief minister, a tour of the factory, a commemorative tree planting ceremony, and an unveiling ceremony.

“Since starting our ice cream business in India by acquiring the time-honored Havmore company, Lotte has achieved remarkable growth in line with India’s remarkable economic growth,” said Chairman Shin. “The completion of this new plant will be a significant milestone for Lotte’s global food business, and we will continue to produce the highest quality products to make Havmore the most beloved brand in India.”

This new Pune plant is the first production facility that Lotte Welfood has expanded since acquiring Havmore in December 2017. The plant site is 60,000 square meters, equivalent to eight soccer fields, and is six times larger than the existing Gujarat plant.

The new plant has greatly improved production efficiency by introducing advanced Korean production technology, including Lotte Welfood’s automated facilities. Lotte Welfood expects that stable product production and supply during the peak ice cream season will be possible, and ice cream sales this year alone will increase by more than 15% year-on-year. The new Pune plant, which currently operates nine lines, plans to expand the number of production lines to 16 by 2028.

Pune, a city in western India where the new Pune factory is located, is the optimal geographical location for Havmore. Havmore plans to use the Pune factory’s production volume to increase its market dominance in western India, while also using the Pune factory as a forward base for its expansion into southern India.

The existing Gujarat factory's production volume will be more concentrated in the northwestern region, which is a key commercial area. In addition, Pune City is expected to see cost reduction and improvement effects as it will be able to receive key raw materials for ice cream production from a close distance.

Havmore is also expanding production of Lotte brand products. Currently, the Gujarat factory is producing World Cone, and the new Pune factory will sequentially produce Pig Bar, Jaws Bar, and Watermelon Bar within the year and supply them to the Indian market. In order to enhance the competitiveness of the Lotte brand in the global market including India, the Lotte brand production volume will continue to expand.

Lotte Welfood is also making a full-fledged foray into the Indian market by carrying out the completion of a new plant and the launch of an integrated corporation. The integrated corporation of Lotte India and Havmore, which will be launched within the first half of the year, is expected to strengthen its product portfolio and integrate logistics bases to create efficiency synergies.

In addition, the Haryana factory in India has been selected as the first overseas production base for the Pepero brand and production will begin in the second half of this year. Lotte Welfood plans to further strengthen its global business while adjusting its business portfolio and focusing on increasing corporate value.

During his trip, Chairman Shin held relay meetings with top executives of global companies, including Reliance Group Chairman Mukesh Ambani, Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra, and Standard Chartered Group Chairman Bill Winters, to discuss business issues and cooperation plans.