Mumbai: Promoters of Lucknow-based CP Milk and Food Products are in early talks to sell a 10–15% stake to private equity investors, a deal that could value the dairy company at ₹2,500–3,000 crore, two people familiar with the matter said.
“The deal was launched a few days ago and several private equity funds have been tapped,” one of the people cited above said. The company will raise about ₹300-400 crore to expand its geographical and product footprint, the second person said on the condition of anonymity.
The company has appointed O3 Capital as its advisor to help raise funds, the people added.
If the fundraise goes as planned, it will mark the company’s first round of external capital.
O3 Capital and CP Milk did not respond to Mint’s requests for comment till the time of publishing.
CP Milk’s fundraising efforts come against the backdrop of several family-owned businesses seeking to tap private markets to catalyze their next phase of growth and ensure smoother succession planning in a professionally run setup.
Mint has earlier reported on similar moves by companies such as Anmol Industries, Haldiram, Theobroma, VIP Industries, Balaji Wafers, Iscon Balaji, HyFun Foods and Ratnadeep Retail, that have raised funds or are in various stages of their fundraising process.
Established in 2007 by C.P. Agarwal in Lucknow, CP Milk sells its product under the brand name 'Gyan'. It began with two products―Gyan Skimmed Milk Powder and Gyan Desi Ghee and is now the largest private dairy in eastern Uttar Pradesh, ranking among the top three brands for fresh milk and milk products, Crisil said in November.
Currently run by Anuj Agarwal and Jai Agarwal, the company sources milk from around 2,700 villages across six districts of central and eastern Uttar Pradesh and has tied up with village-level collection centres for milk supply. Its products are available at over 35,000 retail outlets and through more than 500 distributors.
It processes milk and other milk products, such as SMP, butter, ghee, paneer, lassi, dahi, chaach, khoya and sweets and has four manufacturing units across Uttar Pradesh with a capacity of 1.75 million litres per day.
In FY25, the company reported operating income of ₹1,773.35 crore compared to ₹1,581.04 crore a year earlier. Its profit widened to ₹20.58 crore from ₹12.11 crore in FY24, according to the Crisil report. The company is expected to achieve a revenue of ₹1,800-2,000 crore in FY26, the report added.
It has set up a milk processing unit in Gorakhpur and is expanding this facility to produce ultra-heat-treated milk, which offers higher value addition. The expansion and increased focus on higher value-added products will enable the company to achieve healthy growth, the credit rating agency said.
India’s dairy market, valued at about ₹18,975 billion in 2024, is shifting towards more value-added products like yogurt and cheese and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 12% through 2033, as per online reports. CP Milk competes with new and established players, including Milky Mist, Amul, Ananda, Mother Dairy, Parag Milk, Sid’s Farm, Akshayakalpa and SMC Foods Ltd.