Ahmedabad
Rashtriyashala set up in 1921 by Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi in Rajkot, is now set to launch its edible hair oil with a brand name “Gandhi”. Till date oil was sold in loose without any brand name, but considering the market demand, the trust is seriously considering to launch its products with a brand name.
Rashtriyashala had started sesame seeds crushing in 1935 with traditional Ghani (indigenous cold press oil mill). In the 2001 earthquake, the building was badly damaged, hitting the production. In 2015-16, after the Ghani suffered flaw, production was closed down, said managing trustee Jeetui Bhatt.
“Two years later, the trust decided to revive oil production and now we are annually producing edible oil worth Rs55 lakh. We are crushing groundnut, coconut, castor and sesame. With changing times, consumers are demanding edible and hair oil in one liter packs, so the bottling is started. The trust also plans to put these one liter packs on the shelves of the hyper market, explained managing trustee.
"To survive in the price war is going to be challenging because Ghani production is costlier than machine produced oil. But, those preferring organic and chemical less, will prefer Ghani oil. One liter refined groundnut oil can cost Rs120 a litre, but ghani oil will cost double, yet, if we launch in Gandhi brand name in the retail market, it will make inroads in the organised market," hopes Bhatt.
