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Category: Food

Retail News Asia is committed to providing both local and global retailers with the latest Food and Food & Beverage news throughout the Asian market. This on a daily base.

  • JustKitchen to open first facility in Hong Kong

    JustKitchen to open first facility in Hong Kong

    Ghost kitchens operator JustKitchen will expand into Hong Kong opening its first facility in the territory.

    Located at North Point in the Eastern District, Hong Kong’s first JustKitchen facility is scheduled to launch in mid-June. A selection of food menus will be initially introduced, including Body Fit, Craftsman’s Soul-Made Ramen, Boba Mania, and BIT Beef Noodle, along with Formosa Chang.

    The company also aims to create mixology-based items and menus after its launch, given alcohol delivery is allowed in Hong Kong. JustKitchen’s delivery partners will be Foodpanda and Uber Eats.

    “[The Hong Kong expansion] marks an inflection point in the global element of our competitive strategy,” said Jason Chen, co-founder, and CEO of JustKitchen.

    Hong Kong is JustKitchen’s second international market after Taiwan. The company believes Hong Kong can support six to eight of its ghost kitchen locations.

    “Based on the solid foundation that we’ve established for the company in Taiwan, we are now ready to execute on the international expansion promised to shareholders and take our proven brands, technologies, and standard operating procedures to new markets from this point forward.”

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  • Nestle buys Nuun as it continues to boost its nutritional portfolio

    Nestle buys Nuun as it continues to boost its nutritional portfolio

    Nestle’s Health Science division has bought US nutritional products maker Nuun as it continues to build its portfolio of health and nutrition products.

    Founded in Washington, Seattle in 2004, Nuun is considered a pioneer in the separation of electrolyte replacement from carbohydrates. Its core product is a low-sugar electrolyte tablet for the sports beverage market and its portfolio has expanded into a range of effervescent tablets and powders containing additional minerals and vitamins for energy, relaxation and overall well-being.

    Nuun is the top-selling sports drink supplement brand in running, cycling, outdoor and natural foods stores in the US.

    This is Nestle Health Science’s second such acquisition in less than a month, following the significantly larger-scale purchase of The Bountiful Company’s core brands including Nature’s Bounty, Solgar, Osteo Bi-Flex and Puritan’s Pride. With more than 7000 employees worldwide, Nestle Health Science is a global business unit of Nestle with products distributed in more than 140 countries.

    Nestle Health Science CEO Greg Baher described Nuun as a leader in the fast-growing functional hydration category with quality, clean, plant-based products.

    “Everyday, health-conscious consumers are becoming more aware of how functional hydration products can add to their overall well being as well as support them during exercise by replacing the minerals that the body loses. That growing awareness is reflected in the steady growth of the category,” he said.

    Nuun CEO Kevin Rutherford said his company and Nestle shared the philosophy that nothing is more important than health and well-being.

    “In joining Nestle Health Science, Nuun will further its mission of ‘hydration that empowers the world to move more.’ The Nuun team has built an incredible business and now with the reach, expertise and capabilities of Nestle, I’m confident that together we will grow even more.”

    Terms of the deal were not disclosed, and the sale will be settled in the third quarter of this year, shortly after the Bountiful Company’s deal.

  • Arnott’s teams with Krispy Kreme to create doughnut-inspired biscuits

    Arnott’s teams with Krispy Kreme to create doughnut-inspired biscuits

    Australian biscuit maker Arnott’s has teamed up with Krispy Kreme doughnuts to create a new range of doughnut-inspired Teevee snack biscuits called “dough-scuits”.

    The mini doughnut-shaped snacks come in five different flavors inspired by the doughnut brand – Original Glazed, Caramel Delight, Choc Iced, Strawberry Sprinkle, and Kookies & Kreme.

    The biscuit line is the second collaboration between these two snack food brands: last April, Krispy Kreme released a chocolate glazed doughnut topped with an Arnott’s Mint Slice biscuit.

    “Teevee snacks are a classic, well-loved Australian biscuit, and we’re thrilled to partner with Krispy Kreme to add a new twist to this iconic treat,” said Krishma Sood, brand manager at Arnott’s.

    “With a range inspired by some of Australia’s most popular doughnuts, this new generation of ‘dough-scuits’ is the collaboration Teevee snacks fans have been waiting for!”

    The new Teevee dough-scuits is available at major grocery stores starting this May at RRP $4.00 for a 165g pack.

  • Vietnamese lychee to be sold online for first time

    Vietnamese lychee to be sold online for first time

    Lychees grown in Hai Duong Province will be sold on e-commerce platforms Voso, Sendo, Lazada, and China’s Alibaba on Saturday, according to the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency.

    It would be the first time that the fruits are sold online, and the agency said the biggest hurdle to this is farmers’ lack of knowledge of e-commerce, online marketing, selling and customer support, and quality control.

    It has collaborated with the northern province’s Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development and Industry and Trade to provide training to lychee farmers and traders in setting up and operating stores on the four e-commerce platforms.

    Hai Duong harvested 43,000 tons of lychee last year and exported half of it, including 1,600 tons to Japan, Australia, and the U.S. It expects to harvest 55,000 tons this year, and export half to China.

    In nearby Bac Giang Province, the director of the Department of Industry and Trade, Tran Quang Tan, estimated 180,000 tons of lychees would be harvested this year, with half of it exported to China, 10 percent to Japan, and another 10 percent to the U.S., the EU, and Australia.

    The harvest will take two months starting May end.

    Around 300 Chinese merchants have registered to visit Vietnam to buy lychees in Bac Giang.

    Local authorities will arrange transportation for them at the border, test them for Covid-19 and quarantine them for 14 days.

    The northern provinces of Bac Giang and Hai Duong are Vietnam’s lychee growing hubs, with the former having the largest area for lychee cultivation, which was 28,000 hectares last year, according to Bac Giang Portal. Hai Duong province came in second with 10,000 hectares.

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  • Kinder releases Happy Hippo biscuits in Australia

    Kinder releases Happy Hippo biscuits in Australia

    Confectionery brand Kinder has rolled out Kinder Happy Hippo biscuits in Australian supermarkets. The hippo-shaped biscuits have a crispy wafer shell with a creamy filling and coated in meringue sprinkles.

    Kinder Happy Hippo comes in two flavors – Cocoa and Hazelnut – in bite-sized snack packaging.

    “Happy Hippo delivers the signature Kinder taste and quality ingredients in delicious, crispy biscuit form – free from artificial colors or preservatives,” said Gina Yuwana, senior brand manager at Kinder.

    Kinder Happy Hippo is sold at RRP $1 for a single pack and $4.50 for a five-pack in supermarkets and convenience stores nationwide.

  • Rice exports cross $1 bln on higher prices

    Rice exports cross $1 bln on higher prices

    Vietnam has exported $1.01 billion worth of rice in the first four months of 2021, up 1.2 percent year-on-year, thanks to higher rice prices.

    The volume of rice exports during the period dropped 11 percent year-on-year to 1.9 million tons, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

    However, as the average export price rose 13.4 percent year-on-year to $534 per ton, its value topped that of last year.

    The Vietnam Food Association has forecast that the nation’s rice export value will continue to rise because of higher selling prices.

    Vietnam plans to produce 43 million tons of paddy and targets exporting 6.5 million tons of rice this year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

    The nation was the world’s second-largest rice exporter last year at 6.25 million tons.

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  • Arnott’s buys Kiwi biscuit maker 180 Degrees

    Arnott’s buys Kiwi biscuit maker 180 Degrees

    Arnott’s has bought New Zealand artisan biscuit maker 180 Degrees to add to its stable of sweet and savory crackers.

    The FMCG company bought the business from private equity investor KKR, for an undisclosed sum.

    Founded in 2001 by Frank Lawton, his partner Jill Seton, and Nigel Cranston, 180 Degrees has steadily built a distribution network across New Zealand and into Australia, where its products are stocked by Coles.

    Seton told the National Business Review the business was founded on passion and grew into a premium business. She said Arnott’s shared the founders’ appreciation for legacy and would continue to build the brand.

    Seton and Lawton describe themselves as “massive foodies” who used to travel the world as a butler and chef duo.

    “After years of experiencing the best of international food we settled back into New Zealand life,” she explains on the company’s website. “Our passion for entertainment and good food inspired us to make a beautiful selection of crackers and biscuits to be enjoyed on all social occasions.”

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  • Stride launches four new chewing gum flavours in Australia

    Stride launches four new chewing gum flavours in Australia

    Sugar-free chewing gum brand Stride is to add four new flavors to its range in Australia this month.

    The four new options are Mango Peach, Lim Passionfruit, Lemonade, and Cool Peppermint. Stride’s new range will be available exclusively at Coles and Coles Express stores from tomorrow (May 10) at RRP $3 per bottle.

    “We’re eager to unleash Stride chewing gum in Australia, delivering an enjoyable chewing experience via four delicious long-lasting flavors,” said Paul Chatfield, senior marketing director at Mondelez International ANZ.

    Launched in 2007, Stride was created by Mondelez International-owned Cadbury. The chewing gum range now consists of 20 flavors, including its Stride 2.0 line.

  • Pepsi virtual restaurant matches fizz with foods

    Pepsi virtual restaurant matches fizz with foods

    PepsiCo in the US has launched a digital kitchen called Pep’s Place to encourage consumers to experiment with matching foods with various Pepsi beverages.

    From this week, consumers can visit a dedicated website to select from eight Pepsi drinks and match them with renowned American dishes like cheeseburgers, buffalo wings, Cajun chicken sandwiches, chopped pork sandwiches, spare ribs, and chicken caesar salads. Orders will be fulfilled by major food-delivery services Uber Eats, Door Dash, and Grub Hub, or by Pepsi itself.

    Customers order by first choosing a drink – Pepsi, Diet Pepsi, Pepsi Zero Sugar, Pepsi Real Sugar, Pepsi Wild Cherry, Pepsi Zero Sugar Wild Cherry, Pepsi Mango, and Pepsi Zero Sugar Mango. After that, they are prompted with a selection of food items Pepsi believes complements the drink.

    “For years we have known that Pepsi is the perfect complement to a variety of foods,” said Todd Kaplan, VP of marketing at Pepsi. “But even though consumers know that food tastes Better With Pepsi, they often still forget to order a beverage with their favorite meals.

    “With the launch of Pep’s Place, we have designed a new ‘fast beverage’ restaurant delivery concept that features a menu and experience literally built around the idea of what foods go best with Pepsi, allowing consumers at home to fully optimize their meals,” he said.

    Pep’s Place will trade for a month, supported by eight television commercials broadcast nationwide. The company says the ads were filmed without “unrealistic, idealistic perfection” of food, instead depicting “the celebration of unapologetic love of foods like juicy, drippy cheeseburgers, topping-heavy hot dogs, and pizzas with the extra-long cheese pull”.

    As the example below shows, some are amusing…

  • Vinamilk leaps six notches in Top 50 global dairy companies

    Vinamilk leaps six notches in Top 50 global dairy companies

    Vinamilk has climbed six ranks to 36th in the top 50 world dairy producers with the highest turnovers, according to Plimsoll, a British financial analysis agency.

    With revenue of $2.6 billion in 2020,Vinamilk is the only representative in Southeast Asia to be listed among the Top 50 leading dairy companies in the world. The top 10 include firms from the U.S., New Zealand, Europe, and China.

    In 2017, Vinamilk made the list for the first time. After four years, the company’s revenue has continuously improved in the chart rankings. In 2020, despite Covid-19 impacts, Vinamilk still posted a 5.9 percent increase in revenue over the same period in 2019 and 17 percent compared to 2017, rising six ranks on the world dairy industry map.

    A report from Nielsen also shows Vinamilk is leading the domestic dairy market in key segments, including liquid milk, powdered milk, and condensed milk. Vinamilk has recently introduced new products to consumers, including Vinamilk Green Farm fresh milk, fresh milk with bird’s nest, premium juice Fruit Love, and Hero fruit milk. With a wide variety of new and quality products that meet diverse nutritional needs, the Vinamilk brand has been the most chosen by Vietnamese consumers for eight consecutive years, according to Kantar Worldpanel’s Asia Brand Footprint 2020.

    Vinamilk currently owns 13 factories, 13 farms, with a herd of about 150,000 cows, producing more than 250 types of products.

    The company has exported its products to 56 countries and territories, with a total turnover of more than $2.4 billion. Since 2017, Vinamilk’s export revenue has grown continuously along with the expansion of new export markets.

    In the first quarter of 2021, Vinamilk’s export revenue increased by 7.9 percent over the same period last year.

    To rank higher on the world dairy industry map, Vinamilk has promoted corporate governance and sustainable development as its focal points in the future direction.

    A sustainable development strategy aims at ensuring sustainable values for the economy, society, and environment.

    Mai Kieu Lien, general director of Vinamilk, said the company would maintain stability in production and business and further promote cohesion and value sharing with stakeholders.

    “At Vinamilk, sustainable development will be oriented towards advanced models of the world dairy industry. Specific action plans and initiatives would be implemented along all parts of the value chain, from research and development, farm systems, factories to supply,” Lien maintained.

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  • Fiji Kava names new CEO

    Fiji Kava names new CEO

    Health and wellness company Fiji Kava has appointed Dr. Anthony Noble as its new CEO effective May 31.

    Noble is currently the MD and CEO of Australian Biotherapeutics and has experiences in natural product development, sales and operations management.

    “Anthony’s experience and background in the natural products and biotechnology industries are directly transferable to Fiji Kava, including operational supply chain excellence and in growing the availability of our Fijian Noble Kava across key international markets with new and existing partners,” said Fiji Kava chairman, Dr. Andrew Kelly.

    “We were extremely impressed by the success of Australian Biotherapeutics under the leadership of Anthony including the role he played in securing investment and commissioning their $10m greenfield production facility in Queensland.” Prior to Australian Biotherapeutics, Noble spent 10 years at SFI Health, SFI Research as global head of innovation, and head of North Asia, GM of the company’s Chinese joint venture, and global head of business to business.

    Nicholas Simms, who has been acting as interim CEO, will continue as a non-executive director with founder Zane Yoshida on the Fiji Kava Board.

  • Vodka-based drinks lead 40 per cent surge in RTD sales

    Vodka-based drinks lead 40 per cent surge in RTD sales

    Ready-to-drink sales have recorded double-digit growth over the past year, primarily driven by vodka-based drinks, according to Liquor Marketing Group (LMG).

    In a 12-month period starting from March 2020, the RTD category achieved 40.2 percent growth in dollar sales across the group’s stores, which include Bottlemart, SipnSave, Harry Brown, and Thirsty Camel. RTD sales in this year’s first quarter across the stores surged 39.3 percent compared to the previous quarter.

    Meanwhile, the vodka subcategory saw the strongest demand with a 72.3-per-cent increase, followed by bourbon and seltzer.

    “LMG’s dollar sales growth for the category has continued to be higher than the total market average,” said Scot Hayman, national merchandise manager for beer, spirits, and RTDs at LMG.

    “This trend has been consistent in each state and for all RTD segments.”

    The strong performance of RTDs sales was recorded in WA, with more than 50-per-cent growth, followed by NSW with 44.7 percent.

    According to Hayman, the strong performance of RTDs sales can be attributed to the increasing demand for healthier options.

    “RTDs with low and zero sugar, light RTDs – particularly in vodka and gin, and Seltzer align with this trend and have given shoppers a reason to rediscover and re-engage with RTDs, while simultaneously attracting new buyers across different demographics and life stages,” said Hayman.

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  • Taco Bell makes Malaysian debut

    Taco Bell makes Malaysian debut

    Indulge your guilty pleasures with time-tested regret eating when Taco Bell opens its first Malaysian outlet next month at the Cottage Walk commercial center in Cyberjaya, Selangor.

    Rather than coming to Petaling Jaya as originally announced, the American fast-food chain, famous for cheap Tex-Mex cuisine often consumed to wash down a night of partying, will bring its cheese-heavy range of tacos, burritos, quesadillas, and nacho bowls to KL’s startup bros starting April 2.

    “Malaysians can look forward to an exciting and globally-famous Taco Bell experience which offers a twist to familiar Mexican favorites such as tacos, burritos, and more,” Taco Bell said in a press statement. The Cyberjaya outlet will be open 10 am to 10 pm daily for dine-in and takeaway.

    Of course, like most fast-food chains that have opened their doors in Malaysia, can we hope to see localized versions of Tex-Mex fare like rendang tacos as a Ramadan special, maybe?

    Although the California-based chain last year named Petaling Jaya for its first location, a company representative told Coconuts over the phone that renovation of the site is not completed.

    Dozens of Malaysians took to Twitter to express their glee.

    “Yeay! I always see this in movies but now it’s coming to Cyberjaya,” @Thewaterlilies wrote.

    Be careful what you wish for, as any of Taco Bell’s biggest fans would readily warn.

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  • PepsiCo commits to recycled packaging across entire snacks range

    PepsiCo commits to recycled packaging across entire snacks range

    PepsiCo will convert to 100-per-cent recyclable packaging across its Smith’s, Red Rock Deli, Sakata, and Doritos brands.

    The company has also partnered with the sustainable organization, Clean Up Australia, to increase soft-plastic recycling in Australia.

    By the end of the year, all the packaging will be changed out and will sport the Australasian Recycling Logo. Consumers will be able to recycle all of their snack packagings via curbside recycling for cardboard and plastic trays, and through the Redcycle collection bins for soft plastics.

    “Increased recycling rates are critical to the success of a circular economy for soft plastics,” said PepsiCo Australia and New Zealand chief marketing officer, Vandita Pandey. “Key to this is making packaging recyclable and easy to recycle.

    “We are proud to have achieved the first step – designing 100 percent of our snacks packaging to be recyclable – meeting Australia’s 2025 National Packaging Target four years ahead of schedule.”

    PepsiCo pledged $650,000 at the Australian Government’s National Plastics Summit last year for the Greening the Green program developed by Clean Up Australia. The company partnered with Redcycle and Replas to work with local sporting facilities to streamline rubbish separation and collection as well as increase soft plastics recycling.

    Greening the Green is a 12-week program that targets to improve littering and rubbish collection via an interactive online learning experience.  A pilot testing is underway at the ELS Hall Park in Ryde, NSW and there are an additional 19 sporting grounds that have signed up, bringing the number to a total of 110 sporting facilities joining them for the next two years.

    Facilities can either collect recyclables like soft plastics and beverage containers via specific bins, which will be collected by Redcycle. These will be shredded and delivered to Replas so they can be moulded into seats, bollards, signage and sports trophies., and the end product will be given to each sporting group.

  • Australian firm seeks patent for Vietnam rice variety

    Australian firm seeks patent for Vietnam rice variety

    An Australian firm has sought a patent for Vietnamese rice varieties ST25 and ST24.

    According to intellectual property authority, IP Australia, T&L Global Foods Supply PTY LTD on April 22 sought to register ‘Rice; Best Rice of the World’ trademarks for the two varieties.

    It is the sixth company internationally – the other five are in the U.S. – to seek to appropriate ST25.

    Both were developed in Vietnam by farmer-scientist Ho Quang Cua, with ST25 going on to win the first prize in the 2019 World’s Best Rice Contest held in the Philippines and ST24 the second prize in the 2017 contest in Macau.

    Ngan Tran, director of Maygust Trademark Attorneys in the Australian capital Canberra, said it takes three to four months to carry out checks for patent registration.

    If an application meets all the requirements, the IP agency would issue a notice accepting the trademark and disclose the information enabling anyone with an objection to file within two months, she explained.

    If there is no objection, the patent would be granted, she said.

    Of the five applications for ST25 submitted to the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), only the one by I&T Enterprise Inc. has crossed the first stage.

    The Vietnam Trade Office in the U.S. is helping a Vietnamese company fight I&T.

    The USPTO is set to publish the application by I&T on May 4, and Cua and his son’s company need to file an objection by June 4.

    Several ministries are assisting Cua’s company, which has also hired a law firm.

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