Shares in Donegal Investment Group (formerly Donegal Creameries) were up 5% last week, after the company announced it was investing in a startup business in India that specialises in seed potatoes.

Donegal announced that its subsidiary business, IPM Potato Group, had invested in Utkal Tubers, a startup company based in Bangalore, India. The financial details of the investment were not disclosed. Donegal will licence 12 of its newest IPM seed potato varieties to Utkal, which will market them to farmers in India. Donegal said the varieties have been selected to suit the soil and climatic conditions in India. India is the world’s second-largest potato-producing country behind China, producing between 45m and 50m tonnes of potatoes every year. Utkal operates in seven of the main potato producing states across India. The company develops seed potatoes using an aeroponic (growing plants without soil) system. For 2018, Donegal Investment Group reported sales of €76m and operating profits of €4.1m. The group’s IPM seed potato business recorded sales of €26m and profits of €1.65m