Interview with Alberto Grandoni, CEO of Pericoli Asia Pacific and pioneer of this new challenge
Pericoli Asia Pacific, the Malaysian subsidiary of the Italian company Termotecnica Pericolicompleted two years of success, achieving very interesting figures.
We discussed this topic on this blog and you can read the article here.
The CEO Alberto Grandoni, who has been managing the company since 2016, wants to continue and even boost the growth that is characterizing PAP, especially by acquiring new market shares in countries and geographical areas that in the past were left in the background or not properly taken care of.
Among the territories targeted by the Pericoli management, India enters forcefully in pole position. This country is focusing on strong investments in agriculture both with the livestock sector – specifically poultry- and with protected crops and the related construction of greenhouses.
We had a chat with Alberto Grandoni to better understand the economic situation of the country, what the company goals are and the next activities to be launched.
The general situation
Today the Indian sub-continent is one of the largest producers of eggs and chicken in the world. The poultry industry has undergone a profound transformation in the last two decades: it changed from a simple backyard activity to a large industry that involves several players.
As a result, important investments in farming, in laying hens and in all related processing activities were born.
Among the many, Climate change is a contributing factor in bringing many traditional farmers to their knees with truly dramatic consequences as 95% of farmers still use a basic agricultural technique. The transition to protected crops would allow not only greater productivity and greater profits, but also significantly lower imports of fruit, vegetables, and flowers.
The Indian government is therefore promoting and encouraging greenhouse agriculture, offering subsidies of 50-60% of the project cost to the farmers who decide to invest in this type of activity.
Changing habits
In the past, chicken meat was considered by the local population a delicacy accessible only to few, but with the increase in urbanization and per capita income, this food is increasingly becoming a daily option.
The change in eating habits, which is an international trend, is also influencing those who are gradually converting to a non-vegetarian and significantly diversified diet.
Furthermore, chicken meat is preferred over other products (such as mutton or fish) because it is considered more hygienic, available all year long and at a more accessible cost, compared with other meats.
In the horticultural sector, the increasing demand for cut flowers such as Gerberas, Dutch roses, carnations, lilies, and vegetables as peppers, cucumbers, and tomatoes is suggesting a rosy future for those who decide to venture in this sector.
A promising market not yet penetrated
India currently has one of the lowest consumption of meat and eggs in the world notwithstanding its top performance in terms of production. However, the gradual and constant increase of middle-class income, as well as rapid growth of population, should contribute to creating the right conditions for a sensible increase in the domestic demand for both eggs and chicken eat over the next 5 years (2018-2023). It is recent news that India population will surpass China by 2027.
The development of the food services market, such as the opening of restaurants and fast-food on a larger scale, as well as the spread of bakery products, are also contributing to increasing the consumption of meat and eggs.
Let’s give some figures
Egg production system: 100% cage (8% brown and 92% white eggs)
Self-sufficient rate: 98%
Per capita egg consumption: 68 units
Production costs: $ 0.62 (dollars per dozen)
Costs for food on the farm: $ 276.76 (dollars per ton)
Number of layers: 238,760,000 in 2017 (206,070,000 in 2010)
Egg production companies: 25,000 (2018)
Tons of exported eggs: 12,870
Cropland: 60% of the total
Currently cultivated lands: 82.6 million hectares
Termotecnica Pericoli was already present in India, it is not a leap in the dark, how do you intend to approach the Indian market in comparison to the past?
“Yes, Pericoli products are well known in India since long time ago, our presence in the market, however, was always through third parties and what we feel it was missing is the direct contact with the End User and the unrivaled support that the manufacturer can provide to the user.
Probably the reason for not being able to list Indian Market among the best 5 markets for Pericoli is due to the fact that we have not been able to interact directly with the market and unleash all our potential not only as fan producers but as a brand at the service of the market.
Our exhaust fan EOS and our evergreen combiTERM are probably the most appreciated product in the Indian market, but Pericoli is much more than just EOS and combiTERM, so our goal is to entice our prospects with our entire portfolio of products and services, from Cone Fans to Cooling Walls to name a couple.
Our ventilation line, both air circulation and air extraction fans, and our cooling line and our accessories line can offer valid options that can very well suit the many different needs of the most demanding Customers”.
How does Pericoli Asia Pacific come into play?
“If I am allowed a little bit of history about Pericoli, back in 2009 Pericoli Group decided to assign the management of Asia and Pacific markets to its subsidiary Pericoli Asia Pacific, that within the family we call PAP.
PAP is located in Malaysia due to the central position of this country in the continent.
Since 2009 is much easier, for any customer in Asia, to directly contact Pericoli for any necessity, from the planning stage until the project realization.
From the year of its inception until now, PAP has constantly strengthened its capabilities and presence in the market, from 2013 it is started producing a wide variety of fans and it is able to guarantee the same product quality of the Italian production units.
We slavishly follow the standards that are imposed by the mother company and the customer can take advantage of a complete pre and after sales assistance service and the professionalism of our experts. I believe this steady development of PAP expertise and capabilities are well recognized by our Customers but we feel there is much more to do and much more margin of growth not only in terms of market penetration but also in terms of manufacturing contribution to the whole Group.
For the Indian Market, we feel the need to be more present directly, to be closer to the End Users, understanding their requirements and providing our solutions. It is a necessity of having direct access to farmers and growers to maximize a now mature technical capability of ours.
A direct line, therefore, that goes from the End User to the Designer, without pit stops, allowing a clear and complete communication aimed to maximize Customer benefits in every stage of their project.
From now on, we want to make very well known to all Indian farmers and growers that Pericoli Asia Pacific can be looked as their official and exclusive partner in climate control solutions and they can always refer to us directly for any need related to Pericoli products.
It is time to let Indian Market know who we are and what we are capable of “.
[1] https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/08/study-farmer-suicides-india-climate-change-spd/
[2] https://agricultureguruji.com
[3] Indian Poultry Market Report 2019: Industry Trends, Share, Size, Growth, Opportunity and Forecasts 2011-2018 & 2019-202
[4] /www.internationalegg.com/
[5] Fonte: wikipedia
[6] http://www.neodemos.info/geodemos/lindia-dal-2024-sara-il-paese-piu-popoloso/