TATA Chemicals Europe has launched the Tata Salt brand in the UK
Tata Chemicals Europe (TCE) has launched the Tata Salt brand in the UK. The initial target market is the Indian diaspora in the UK, people who know and value the iconic Tata Salt brand from India.
Dr Richard Diggle, business development manager, TCE, who is leading the launch, said, “It is an extremely exciting project to be involved in. It has required a huge amount of work to take such a well-loved Indian brand and adapt it, to ensure that it complies with all the UK and EU regulations. It’s early days and there will be lots of things to learn, but there are many exciting opportunities ahead.”
Commenting on the launch, TCE managing director Dr Martin Ashcroft said, “Strategically this is an important project for our business and is a good example of how we can innovate and create new value-added products with relatively low investment. It also demonstrates the power of working with and learning from our colleagues within the Tata group, both from our parent company and also Tata Global Beverages who have provided us with help and guidance.”
The UK version of Tata Salt will be manufactured at the British Salt plant in Cheshire, which was acquired by TCE in 2011, and marks the company’s first venture into consumer products. Two products are being launched initially, a 1kg Tata Salt bag aimed at domestic consumers and a 12.5kg bag aimed at the restaurant and take-away market. Both will be iodised salt, which is something new for the UK market and potentially has wider implications.
Explaining the rationale behind manufacturing iodised salt in the UK market, Dr Ladan Iravanian, general manager for British Salt, said, “It is not well known that the UK has a significant issue with iodine deficiency and this has potentially serious health consequences for many people. I am delighted to announce that we will soon be starting a project with the University of Manchester to look at how we can raise awareness of this serious health risk at a national level, and how we, as a business, can best support the growth of iodised salt in the UK and further afield.”