Fermenta Biotech, a company based in Thane and the sole producer of Vitamin D3 in India and one of the three largest global manufacturers, is increasing its production capacity for plant-based Vitamin D3. This move is driven by growing demand from supplement and food brands for vegetarian alternatives to traditional animal-derived Vitamin D3.
Expansion Plans and Scale
According to Fermenta Biotech Managing Director, Prashant Nagre, the new capital project in Dahaj is scheduled for completion within the next nine to twelve months, with commercial production commencing in Fiscal Year 28 (FY28). The expansion will provide an annual production capacity of approximately one ton of plant-based Vitamin D3 and 50 kg of Vitamin D3 derivatives, including calcifediol. Furthermore, a fermentation capacity of 75 kiloliters will be established for producing green chemistry enzymes.
Financial Aspects of the Project
Fermenta had previously expanded its Vitamin D3 capacities in Dahaj, increasing crystalline capacity by 25 percent in 2021, although the total installed capacity of the facility was not disclosed. The company's expansion program, valued at 110 crore rupees, covers plant-source Vitamin D3, its derivatives, and green chemistry enzymes. Approximately 60 crore rupees has been allocated to the comprehensive program for plant-based Vitamin D3 and its derivatives.
Technology and Market Demand
The company developed VITADEE Green using a patented process after nearly ten years of research and development. This process utilizes agricultural byproducts to create plant-source Vitamin D3, although the botanical source was not disclosed. Traditional Vitamin D3 is usually obtained from lanolin, a wax extracted from sheep's wool. This has stimulated demand for plant analogues among vegan and vegetarian consumers, as well as among brands seeking clean, traceable, and environmentally sustainable ingredients.
Prashant Nagre noted that previously, brands needing a vegetarian option for Vitamin D3 mainly relied on expensive imports or used Vitamin D2. VITADEE Green offers an alternative produced in India, which Fermenta considers scalable and commercially more accessible. The new product is intended for use in dietary supplements, nutraceuticals, functional and fortified foods and beverages, and can be supplied in powder or oil form for tablets, capsules, chewing gums, premixes, sprays, and nutritional drinks.
Market Size and Need
According to Fermenta, the market size for conventional Vitamin D3 in India is estimated at 1,000–1,500 crore rupees within the broader vitamins and minerals segment valued at about 20,600 crore rupees. Vitamin D consumption has shown double-digit growth over the past five years. Despite the normalization of exceptional consumption growth related to COVID, demand remains above pre-pandemic levels, supported by increased awareness of preventive health, higher testing rates, and the emergence of new nutraceutical formats.
India remains significantly underserved despite the widespread prevalence of low Vitamin D levels. Low Vitamin D status may be linked to indoor lifestyles, reduced outdoor activity, air pollution, clothing practices, darker skin pigmentation, obesity, and limited dietary sources. Vitamin D is critical for calcium absorption, bone mineralization, and normal muscle function; severe deficiency can cause rickets in children, leading to soft and deformed bones, and osteomalacia, bone pain, and muscle weakness in adults.
Company Strategic Goals
Fermenta has initiated customer qualification procedures in the dietary supplement, functional food, and beverage sectors but has not disclosed any binding purchase commitments or commercial orders. Revenue from the new capacities is expected to grow gradually after commissioning as customer qualification is completed and utilization rates increase. In Fiscal Year 26, Fermenta's consolidated revenue was 551 crore rupees, with human nutrition accounting for about 53 percent of this revenue and animal nutrition for about 20 percent. Prashant Nagre emphasized that the company's goal is not just to capture market share from traditional D3, but to expand the category itself, enabling the use of D3 in areas where the limitation was previously the sourcing of animal raw materials.
