Girijan Co-operative Corporation (GCC) is on a marketing drive with focus on retail markets and has in recent times released 10 new products, according to T Baburao Naidu, the Vice-Chairman and Managing Director (MD).

"Our focus is on value-addition and processing and sale of finished products in retail markets rather than on bulk sale of produce collected from Girijans in the hilly tracts of Visakhapatnam, East Godavari and other districts," he said and added that 10 new products had been released into the market.

The products are arrow root powder, honey face cream, amla candy, soapnut hairwash, Chinthuru tasar saris, various grades of dry chilli powder, multi-grain biscuits, cashew kernel, instant coffee powder, and pepper.

"Re-branding of the products to give them a distinct tribal look and on-line sales through Flipkart and Amazon are some of the steps we have taken to push these products," he said.

He said new retail outlets had been opened at 29 important places in the State and 20 more were in the final stages of construction at tourist places.

GCC was planning to add 18 more retail outlets, he said.

He said the company had opened petrol bunks in some of the remote tribal villages to facilitate Girijans to move their produce on vehicles and more were in the pipeline. A new jackfruit processing-unit would be set up at Paderu in Visakhapatnam district at a cost of Rs 8 crores.

GCC is targeting a turnover of Rs 530 crores during the current financial year as against last year's Rs 343 crores.

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