Aashirvaad ghee will make its debut this Diwali as ITC plans to enter into the dairy segment. Extending the product range of its biggest non-cigarette brand, the company is looking to replicate the success it achieved in the unorganised segment with the Aashirvaad brand.

Being a household name, Aashirvaad has tremendous brand equity among households and housewives, so ITC has decided to launch ghee under the Aashirvaad umbrella, which also provides spices and other food products.

Aashirvaad is a Rs. 2,600-crore brand and controls 74 percent share of the country's packaged atta market, which ITC entered in 2002, a year after getting into packaged food with ready-to- eat products.

V L Rajesh, ITC's divisional chief executive, in an interview said that dairy related categories are in various stages of development as part of ITC's plans to extend its portfolio. This includes ice-cream, butter, cheese, curd, milk-based drinks and ready-to-mix products.

India being the largest producer and consumer of dairy products is expected to see 15 to16 percent growth with its expansion in the value added products.