Philippines cocoa and chocolate firm Cacao Culture is riding the rising consumer demand for healthier products to draw younger consumers to the traditional local drink tablea, also dubbed the ‘healthiest form of hot chocolate available’.
By Emil Fazira Bte Kamari, senior analyst at Euromonitor International
Snack sticks are enjoying a surge in Asia as new entrants enter the category with smaller pack sizes and innovative flavors, writes Euromontior analyst Emil Fazira Bte Kamari.
Universal Robina Corporation (URC) has snapped up New Zealand snack giant Griffin’s Foods for NZ$700m ($606.6m) in a move it says should bolster its presence in the Asian snack sector.
Singapore-based Petra Foods plans to invest in its consumer brands and will target fast-growing South East Asia chocolate markets after selling its ingredients division to Barry Callebaut.
The Philippines can evolve as a top-quality cocoa source and serve the needs of growing demand for chocolate in Asia, according to a start-up company trading beans in the market.
Singapore-based Petra Foods’ cocoa ingredients business had nosedived in its second quarter (Q2) results due to weakening chocolate demand in developed markets.
In a move emphasising the flight of many food manufacturers out of
the UK, Heinz has decided to move production of the HP Sauce brand
to Holland from its plant in Birmingham.
Philippines-based company PCI Worldwide is investing P27.6 million
(€400,000) into the production and export of carrageenan, a gum
that is derived from red seaweed and is commonly used as an
additive in the food industry.
