Mango Butter Financial Feasibility Analysis: Value Added in the Chittoor District, Andhra Pradesh, India
Sita Pendurthi, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, defended her thesis, “Mango Butter Financial Feasibility Analysis: Value Added in the Chittoor District, Andhra Pradesh, India” on December 20. She is an Advisor for the Archean Group. Pendurthi will be a spring graduate from Kansas State University with a Master of Agribusiness (MAB) degree.
The production of mango butter, a byproduct of mangos used in the cosmetic and soap industries, has increased in recent years in India. With the use of hydraulic pressing, extraction of oil from the mango kernel has become less expensive and results in a pure form of the resource, leading to the opportunity to convert a waste product into small-scale mango butter businesses. In her thesis, Pendurthi examines the economic implications of establishing a mango butter operation, through examining manufacturing and market trends in India, evaluating different unit locations and by presenting a model to assess the financial feasibility of investment projects.
“The advantages and limitations of competitors producing in the Indian market are examined. The study also identifies additional uses for mango butter in countries that are major consumers of the resource, and highlights products with which mango butter could compete”, said Pendurthi.
Pendurthi’s research suggested that entrepreneurs should study the sector thoroughly before investing in mango butter production. The thesis provides a foundation on which further analysis can be performed to determine whether mango butter production is economically viable for individual situations.
Allen Featherstone, Professor, Agricultural Economics Department Head, Director of the MAB program and Pendurthi’s thesis advisor, said, “Any time an item can be moved from a waste channel into an economically viable product, there are positive economic and environmental results. Ms. Pendurthi has identified one such opportunity”.
The full thesis publication can be found online on Kansas State University’s Research Exchange at http://hdl.handle.net/2097/38672.
