Onjus - Squeezed Out

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Juicy Prospects Contd...

Onjus was an instant success and this was partly attributed to its first-mover advantage. Its success was attributed to the ATA model of 'Availability, Taste and Affordability', and to its distribution network. The network spanned 302 towns across general stores, supermarkets and departmental stores. In April 1998, Onjus doubled its capacity from 80,000 to 1,60,000 packs per day. By 1998, Onjus had become a Rs.600 million brand and had also penetrated the household segment with its 1-litre tetra-packs. In the same year, ETL increased the price of the 250ml pack to Rs.12. The 1-litre pack was sold at Rs.44. In early 1999, Onjus entered the institutional segment and was available in military canteens, hotels and clubs. Onjus was also served on some airlines during flights.

TABLE II
TETRA PACK FRUIT BEVERAGES MARKET (NOVEMBER 1999)

Source: ORG-MARG Survey

Oranges Turn Sour

In August 1999, the DGIR filed a complaint against Onjus with the MRTPC. The DGIR accused ETL of indulging in deceptive and unfair trade practices by misleading consumers regarding the quality of oranges used in Onjus. The DGIR charged that ETL had declared Onjus as containing natural orange juice concentrate and water on the outer pack, which was contrary to the test reports. This followed a complaint received by the DGIR from Uma Shankar Mishra (Mishra) of Ghaziabad.

According to the complaint, Mishra had purchased six packs of 250 ml Onjus juice believing that it was natural orange juice but was surprised to find it 'very sweet and different in color from that of fresh orange juice.' Mishra had the juice analyzed, which indicated that Onjus contained a high percentage of sugar and beta-carotene, a natural color.

Appealing for interim relief, the DGIR said that the concealment of the ingredients included in Onjus was in violation of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act.⁷ Replying to the complaint, ETL said that there were no standards for orange juice in India and it had followed the 'CODEX standards.'⁸

The company also said the orange juice it manufactured was a blend of different varieties of oranges, namely South American, Kinnow and Mandarin. The company further said that natural beta-carotene was present in different proportions in different varieties of orange with a high beta-carotene in Kinnow. The company also maintained that the color of the juice was due to the blend of Kinnow and Mandarin varieties.

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7] The objective of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act - 1954 was prevention of adulteration in food articles and supply of pure and proper quality foodstuffs to the consumer. The standards in respect of the quality in food article were fixed. The rules defined the standards of quality and fix the limits of variability of constituents permissible in respect of articles of food.
8] The CODEX Commission was created in 1962 by two UN organizations - the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO). CODEX is a major international mechanism for encouraging fair international trade in food while promoting the health and economic interests of consumers. Under the CODEX standard, orange juice can be preserved exclusively by physical means. The juice can be obtained by mechanical process. The juice may contain upto 10% m/m of Mandarin juice. It can be concentrated and later re-constituted with water suitable for the purpose of maintaining the essential composition and quality factors of the juice.