Bangkok Air Catering : Navigating Disruption
Khun Linus A.E. Knobel, Managing Director of Bangkok Air Catering, discusses the importance of an agile approach following COVID-19.
Express Food Group (EFG) : A Passion for Good Food
Express Food Group is helping bring people across Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos together through its renowned food and beverage offerings.
Trukai Industries : Producing for PNG
Trukai Industries Ltd has been building up a national rice industry for more than 50 years, its work centred around community and people.
Tereos FKS Indonesia
Reversing the Import TideTereos FKS Indonesia is determined to reverse the trend of reliance on food imports, the joint venture now supplying more than a quarter of the nation’s demand for corn starch Writer: Tom Wadlow | Project Manager: Ben Weaver Indonesia is something of a regional posterchild when it comes to telling the story of Southeast Asia’s economic rise. The fourth most populated country in the world, the archipelago nation is also home to incredible cultural diversity, made up of more than 300 ethnic groups who pool together to power what is the largest regional economy. The country’s rise has been impressive. Since the Asian financial crisis of the late 1990s, Indonesian GDP per capita has risen markedly, from just $823 in 2000 to $3,932 in 2018. Poverty in Indonesia has been reduced by more than half (to 9.4 percent in 2019), with the nation now a member of the G-20 and home to the 10th largest economy in the world in terms of purchasing power parity. So, in short, there is a lot to be optimistic about. However, something of an elephant in the room is the fact that Indonesia, despite its enormous agrarian potential, is over-reliant on food imports. “Indonesia is enjoying economic growth of more than five percent compared to the global economic growth of three percent, and increasing demand in the food and beverage industry is also developing in terms of quantity and product type,” explains Maya Devi, Commercial and Operations Director at Tereos FKS Indonesia. “Unfortunately, lots of our food ingredient supply has been dominated…
Innovative Agro Industry
Inspiring Agrarian IndependenceInnovative Agro Industry continues to drive developments across a wide variety of agricultural endeavours, providing PNG producers with vital commercialisation opportunities and employment to many other locals Writer: Tom Wadlow | Project Manager: Matthew Selby Papua New Guinea should be a self-sustaining agrarian producer.The country is blessed with naturally conducive conditions for farming a wide variety of crops – a warm and rainy climate, rich soil and abundant water resources – but despite these favourable factors it relies on imports to feed its people.Among the top imported products, along with vehicles, fuel and heavy machinery, are meat and rice, basic dietary staples which consumers are paying inflated prices for due to a lack of commercial home production.For Ilan Weiss, Chairman & Executive Director of Innovative Agro Industry (IAI), the opportunity to narrow this deficit and help PNG to get back on (or discover) its farming feet was too good to turn down.“The primary reason to engage in agriculture here are the Papua New Guineans,” he says. “You can try and engage a Papua New Guinean on any subject on any matter and they may be interested or not, just like anyone else, but you mention agriculture to them, and their eyes light up.“The reason for this is that they have been doing agriculture for far longer than Europeans – it is something that is dear to their hearts. Papua New Guineans have been farming for thousands of years but that does not deter an acceptance of innovation. You find good farmers almost everywhere in the country.”IAI is a subsidiary of LR Group, a leading project development organisation active in Africa, Europe,…
Classic Fine Foods Asia
Food Made Personal Partnering with artisanal producers all over the world, Classic Fine Foods prides itself on helping food industry operators to connect with their customers and tell their stories Writer: Tom Wadlow | Project Manager: Lewis Bush “An important trend that we are seeing is the need to tell a story. “Consumers are increasingly conscious of where their food comes from. How long ago was the fish caught? How was the fish caught? How far away from the restaurant does it come from? These are all questions we as suppliers and chefs need to answer.” For Christophe Barret and food sourcing specialist Classic Fine Foods (CFF), provenance is everything. More than ever consumers are scrutinising the story behind their food and drink purchases, so much so that the journey a product takes before reaching them can carry equal weight to the substance of the item itself. “Sustainability, for example, is therefore a major requirement for our chefs in today’s restaurant industry as their customers will choose dishes that are produced responsibly,” adds Barret, who is approaching one year as CFF’s Chief Executive Officer. “I’m French and I love food – two things that often go hand in hand,” he adds. “I started my career in the retail industry 25 years ago and joined Classic Fine Foods in October 2018 after 14 years working in five different markets.” Personal touch Although now owned by a leading international wholesale company, Classic Fine Foods has been able to operate with a strong degree of independence which has enabled it to maintain what Barret believes is an organisational hallmark and…
The Coffee Emporium
The Coffee Custodian Coffee aficionado John Ayoub tells the story of The Coffee Emporium, a premium brand on the rise across Australia and the UAE Writer: Jonathan Dyble | Project Manager: Lewis Bush There’s nothing quite like the smell of fresh coffee in the morning. Be it the rich aromas, artistic ritual of brewing the perfect cup, or the delicately complex story that each and every granule tells, there’s a reason coffee is an eclectic, artisan experience. For John Ayoub, such undertones have motivated a lifelong love for the beverage. “I’ve always enjoyed coffee,” he affirms. “Even looking back to my early teenage years, I can remember having an appetite for stronger, bitter tasting coffee. If I had to put my finger on it, I’d say it’s the aftertaste that’s always got me.” Having allowed this passion to blossom, it’s no surprise that Ayoub took an entrepreneurial chance in 2002, acquiring a small, rustic coffee shop in Bankstown – a southwestern suburb of Sydney. “Coffee culture is pretty big here, so the opportunity was evident,” Ayoub reveals. “The café I took on was pre-existing, albeit slightly run down. Upon purchasing it from the former owner, I introduced my own unique coffee blend and The Coffee Emporium brand which proved to be a hit, boosting our reputation, earning us referrals and garnering repeat business.” Owed to this premium blend, derived from some of the best quality flavours and influences from Central and South America, Africa and Asia, The Coffee Emporium quickly rose to pre-eminence, its sales soaring from just a number of kilos a week to much larger volumes. As a result,…
McDonald’s Pakistan
Taking Fast Food Further Empowering equal opportunities, industry localisation and social investment, McDonald’s Pakistan is embodying the country’s strategic strides Writer: Jonathan Dyble | Project Manager: Lewis Bush Pakistan is nothing less than a nation on the rise. Described by the World Bank as a region with a demographic dividend and significant development potential, the country is already capitalising on such abundant prospects, its economy having grown almost six percent in fiscal year 2018 (FY18). Resultantly, national poverty rates are also falling. According to current estimates, this is forecast to decrease to 3.1 percent (in accordance with the international poverty line) at the conclusion of FY19, down from the four percent recorded in 2015. Indeed, the government continues to take the reins in facilitating these outcomes, readily addressing economic, social and fiscal imbalances. Yet enterprises similarly have begun to play a greater role in enabling socioeconomic progression – a role that McDonald’s Pakistan is proactively embracing. “Pakistan’s potential is tremendous,” states Jamil Mughal, Chief Operations, Marketing, Development and Supply Chain Officer at McDonald’s Pakistan. “Home to a population of 200 million people, there’s clearly room for the economy to grow, but only if it continues to stabilise – a requirement that we’re attempting to assist.” It is this underlying ambition that ultimately drew Mughal to joining McDonald’s back in 1998, the company’s meteoric expansion in the two decades since having been underpinned by strives for grassroots development. “I’ve loved every minute of working here,” he affirms. “It’s an amazing company, every day is a new day with a new challenge. McDonald’s is innovation, it’s evolving, and…
Restaurants Development Co.
Restaurants Development Co. Thailand is making huge strides with the KFC brand, and is on course to reach 200 stores by the end of 2019.
Pizza Hut Singapore
From two brothers with $600 and an idea to outlets in 84 countries globally, the Pizza Hut brand has reached international stardom. Its Singaporean operations provide the evidence.
