Suguna Foods Private Limited is a billion-dollar Indian multinational

food products Food is any substance consumed by an organism for nutritional support. Food is usually of plant, animal, or fungal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals. The substance is inge ...

company headquartered in

Coimbatore Coimbatore, also spelt as Koyamputhur (), sometimes shortened as Kovai (), is one of the major metropolitan cities in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located on the banks of the Noyyal River and surrounded by the Western Ghats. Coimbato ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. The company was started in 1984 and is involved in broiler farming,

hatcheries A hatchery is a facility where eggs are hatched under artificial conditions, especially those of fish, poultry or even turtles. It may be used for ex-situ conservation purposes, i.e. to breed rare or endangered species under controlled condit ...

, feed mills, processing plants, and

vaccine A vaccine is a biological Dosage form, preparation that provides active acquired immunity to a particular infectious disease, infectious or cancer, malignant disease. The safety and effectiveness of vaccines has been widely studied and verifie ...

s manufacturing for

poultry Poultry () are domesticated birds kept by humans for their eggs, their meat or their feathers. These birds are most typically members of the superorder Galloanserae (fowl), especially the order Galliformes (which includes chickens, quails, a ...

. It markets and exports broiler chicken, frozen chicken, chicken eggs, and is the largest poultry company in India.

History

Founders

Mr. B. Soundararajan and Mr. G. B. Sundararajan were the founders of Suguna Foods. They hail from a village near

Udumalpet Udumalai, also known as Udumalaipettai and Udumalpet (), is a town in Tiruppur district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Udumalaipettai is located 535 km (332 mi) south west from the state capital, Chennai and 72 km (45 mi) away from Coimbator ...

. Their parents were school teachers. They entered

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

after successful completion of school. They were Agriculturalists when they started

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult mal ...

and

farms simultaneously.

1984–90

In 1984 they started a small

farm with a small investment of Rs 5000. In 1986 they started a poultry-related trading firm. In 1990 the situations around them demanded them to pioneer the concept of

contract farming Contract farming involves agricultural production being carried out on the basis of an agreement between the buyer and farm producers. Sometimes it involves the buyer specifying the quality required and the price, with the farmer agreeing to deliv ...

for the first time in India.

Contract farming

In this

concept, the company provides chicks, feed,

healthcare Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in people. Health care is delivered by health profe ...

, and Technical support. The farmer's responsibility is to have a

shed and manage it effectively. So farmers are able to get secured regular income from Suguna.

1990s

From 1990 to 1997, the company grew gradually. In 1997, the company got its first sizable turnover of 7 crores. Expanded their business all over

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a States and union territories of India, state in southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of India ...

and started professionalizing the company. At the end of 90's, they got turnover of 100 crores.

2000

In 2000, the founders moved into the neighboring states of

Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...

and

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

. They found an ally in several

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

governments due to their objective to Energize Rural India. They overcame the opposition of the middlemen with the help of farmers and the respective state governments.

2000 – present

Over a period of 35 years, Suguna has gone from strength to strength and has become an Rs.10500 crore

company A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of people, whether Natural person, natural, Legal person, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common p ...

that makes it India's No.1

broiler A broiler is any chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') that is bred and raised specifically for meat production. Most commercial broilers reach slaughter weight between four and six weeks of age, although slower growing breeds reach slaughte ...

producer in India. Along the way, Suguna's pioneering efforts in

helped create thousands of rural entrepreneurs who share the growth successfully. "

Poultry Poultry () are domesticated birds kept by humans for their eggs, their meat or their feathers. These birds are most typically members of the superorder Galloanserae (fowl), especially the order Galliformes (which includes chickens, quails, a ...

Integration" introduced and pioneered by Suguna in the country has energized the livelihoods of farmers in rural

. Suguna ranks among the top ten

companies worldwide. With operations in 16 states across

, it offers a range of

products and services. The fully integrated operations cover broiler and layer farming,

, feed mills, processing plants,

vaccines A vaccine is a biological preparation that provides active acquired immunity The adaptive immune system, also known as the acquired immune system, is a subsystem of the immune system that is composed of specialized, systemic cells and pro ...

and

exports An export in international trade is a good produced in one country that is sold into another country or a service provided in one country for a national or resident of another country. The seller of such goods or the service provider is an ...

. Suguna markets live broiler chicken, value-added eggs, and frozen chicken. With the intent to provide consumers with fresh, clean, and hygienic packed chicken, Suguna has set up a chain of modern retail outlets. Today, the company's brand Suguna Chicken is a household name in

. With its Suguna Daily Fressh outlets, Suguna Home Bites, Suguna Anytime processed chicken, and four varieties of specialty Suguna value-added

eggs Humans and human ancestors have scavenged and eaten animal eggs for millions of years. Humans in Southeast Asia had domesticated chickens and harvested their eggs for food by 1,500 BCE. The most widely consumed eggs are those of fowl, especial ...

, Suguna is the undisputed leader in

products. Suguna Home Bites being the latest in its product range is a new category of home meal replacements. In 2020, Suguna Foods has funded a $15 million contract with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to maintain poultry agricultural production.

Awards and recognition

* In 1994 National Trade Excellence Award, Ministry for Power, Government of

* In 1995-2000 Best Performance Award,

National Productivity Council The National Productivity Council (NPC) was established in 1958 as an autonomous organization under Department for Promotion of Industry & Internal Trade, Ministry of Commerce and Industry (India), Government of India. There are 13 regional office ...

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...

* In 2007 Asian Livestock Industry Award,

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

* In 2010 Entrepreneur of the year,

TiE Tie has two principal meanings: * Tie (draw), a finish to a competition with identical results, particularly sports * Necktie, a long piece of cloth worn around the neck or shoulders Tie or TIE may also refer to: Engineering and technology * Ti ...

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

* In 2011 Asian Poultry Personality, International Poultry Production,

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estima ...

* In 2012 Green Ambassador Award,

Rotary International Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, prof ...

* In 2012 Entrepreneur of the year-

* In 2012 "Consumer Products"

Ernst & Young Ernst & Young Global Limited, trade name EY, is a multinational professional services partnership headquartered in London, England. EY is one of the largest professional services networks in the world. Along with Deloitte, KPMG and Pricewaterh ...

* In 2012 National Entrepreneurship and Quality Assurance award, National Association of Public Health Veterinarians * In 2012 "Agriculture Leadership Award", Agriculture Today

References

External links

* {{Official website, http://sugunafoods.co.in/ 1986 establishments in Tamil Nadu Companies based in Coimbatore Companies established in 1986 Food and drink companies of India Poultry companies Poultry industry in India Agriculture companies of India