Banas Dairy Expands French Fries Capacity in Vav-Tharad, PM to Inaugurate
Gandhinagar, October 29: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to e-inaugurate the expanded French fries processing plant operated by Banas Dairy in Sanadar village, Deodar tehsil, Vav-Tharad district, on October 30.
The expansion work, which started in April 2026, focuses on boosting both French fries production and packing line capacity. An investment of Rs 51.65 crore will lift the plant's output from 2 tonnes per hour to 5 tonnes per hour.
The move is aimed at accelerating potato processing and offering local potato producers better rates and new market avenues.
An established potato hub
Banaskantha is recognised as a frontrunner in potato production. In the past 25 years, the area under processing-grade potato cultivation has risen from about 400 hectares to 61,016 hectares.
During 2024-25, the district yielded around 18.7 lakh tonnes of potatoes, with productivity near 30 tonnes per hectare. Fertile land, a favourable climate and advanced cultivation systems make the region ideal for chipping-grade and French fries-grade potato production.
Resource recovery
The organic waste left after potato processing is used to generate biogas, and the remaining residue is recycled back into farming.
The Seed to Fry approach
Banas Dairy entered the French fries category under the Amul brand in 2019. Since then, it has created a 'Seed to Fry' mechanism that connects quality seed preparation, potato cultivation, procurement and processing.
The process begins with disease-free germplasm received from the Central Potato Research Institute (CPRI) and other institutions. It is grown in the dairy's tissue culture lab and then developed into G-0 minitubers at an aeroponic facility in Kanpur.
These minitubers are further raised in the field to the G-3 stage, making certified seed available to farmers and ensuring that suitable-quality potatoes are produced for processing.
Price certainty for growers
The purchase price of potatoes is determined in advance when seed is handed over to farmers. Banas Dairy paid approximately Rs 1.83 crore as price difference amounts to potato farmers in 2023-24. The buyback price was Rs 13 per unit in 2024-25 and Rs 14 per unit in 2025-26.
Supply chain and seed initiatives
To reinforce the potato value chain, Banas Dairy set up a 10,000-tonne cold storage facility in 2024. In November 2025, it signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Bharatiya Beej Sahkari Samiti Limited (BBSSL) to deliver certified seed to farmers across the country.
Growth in exports
In 2025-26, India exported about 2.77 lakh tonnes of value-added potato products, worth roughly Rs 2,744.50 crore. The expanded Sanadar facility will give a boost to potato value addition. With quality seed, organised procurement, storage and enhanced processing capacity working together, Banaskantha's potato products are likely to find new markets and agro-based industries in the region are expected to grow.