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Avestha Gengraine Technologies Pvt Ltd is taking another step forward for expansion, including an IPO. The company has booked about nine acres at the Shapoorji & Pallonji Biotech Park in Andhra Pradesh. Towards this, the company has proposed to sign an agreement with the SP Biotech Park in the next few days.
"At the park we plan to develop global products, which will address the needs of the healthcare industry. This would include nutritional bioactives and agri-products which are expected to fight drought, salinity or oxidative stress for better yield advantage," Avesthagen Group spokesman told The Financial Express.
The company already has a spin-off subsidiary, Avesthagen Quality Agriculture Services Pvt Ltd (AQUAS), at the ICRISAT campus in Patancheru, near Hyderabad, for quality testing using DNA-based technologies. The company hopes to become a one-stop-labelling shop for inter-specific testing in food certification process through DNA fingerprinting, seed purity testing, tissue culture, transformation etc.
AQUAS has already signed a licensing agreement with the US-based Genetic-ID to use GMO testing technology in India and Bangladesh. The GMO testing technology has already been accredited by the UK accreditation services and it is also being sought by the Agricultural and Processed Foods Export Development Authority (APEDA) and the Deparment of Biotechnology (DBT).
Meanwhile, the company recently signed an agreement with the Raisio Group of Finland, giving the exclusive marketing rights (EMRs) for Benecol. Benecol is a food ingredient in yoghurt, pasta, cereal bars and mayonnaise-based salads. Besides this, “We are engaged in dialogue with food and dairy product companies in the country which are developing new products or line extensions incorporating nutraceuticals,” he said.
To support its exponential growth in business and infrastructure, the company is talking to venture capitalists. As of now, the company has received about $6 million.
“We are looking at raising between $10-15 million from equity investors from within and outside India,” he said, adding that the company is planning an IPO, probably within next 18 months.
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