Bengaluru, Sep 6 : Indian multinational ITC Foods on Tuesday announced entering the coffee beverage segment with the launch of two flavours made of Indian and Latin American beans.

\"To the discerning consumers, our Sunbean Gourmet Coffee in two flavours offers a blend of Indian and international bean varietals,\" said V.L. Rajesh, Divisional Chief Executive, ITC Foods.

The Nicamalai flavour is a fruity sweet aromatic blend of beans from Nicaragua and Anamalai hills in Tamil Nadu, while Panagari flavour is a fragrant variety with strong aroma from Panamanian beans and Arabica beans from Baba Budangiri hills in Karnataka\'s Chikkamagaluru district.

Baba Budangiri is popularly considered to be the birthplace of coffee in India where Baba Budan, a legendary holy saint, planted the first coffee seeds that he had brought from Yemen.

\"We will launch the special coffee beverage in our other luxury hotels across the country during this month,\" said Rajesh.

Consumers can also buy roasted coffee beans at Rs 800 for 200 grammes packet from the company\'s food and beverages outlets in its hotels.

\"Our aim is to create a premium gourmet coffee experience for discerning consumers. We have achieved this by blending chosen beans from across the world with the best in our country,\" added Rajesh.

ITC\'s Foods business also exports its products to North America, Africa, Middle East and Australia.

ITC Foods forays into coffee beverages