India’s Reliance stops selling meat products
Reflecting the sensitivities of many Hindus, who are repelled by even the sight of meat, a communiqué released on Monday (16 December) said that, despite the “sensitive balance of availability and convenience” created segregated vegetarian and non-vegetarian outlets, “certain sections of customers” were unhappy. The decision has been implemented with immediate effect.
Speaking to globalmeatnews.com, a Reliance spokesperson said about 100 of its 776 food outlets – the company has total of 1,560 stores – used to serve meat items. In the financial year ending March 2013 the ‘Delight’ section had sales of US$10m and registered a loss of US$280,000, he said.
The country’s meat industry is not overly concerned by the news, however. Dr Aswhani Kumar Rajput, executive director of the All India Poultry Business Association told globalmeatnews.com that the decision by Reliance “would not have any effect on the trade as it was not a major player in the poultry market”.
Reliance’s non-vegetarian offerings included the ‘Real’ brand of frozen chicken and a variety of fresh and frozen meat and seafood products. The company will continue to sell dairy products.
