Kewpie looks to expand focus ‘beyond the salad bowl’ in Asia
Japan’s Kewpie believes that there is a role for its mayonnaise-based sauces in consumption occasions outside salads in Asia, targeting areas such as RTE meals and bakery.
Kewpie is best known for its range of salad dressings, and over the years the firm has innovated widely within this category with ingredients such as sesame, yuzu and wasabi.
Today Kewpie is looking to grow its footprint beyond its core consumption occasion as a salad accompaniment, by innovating new uses for its products into novel areas.
“Kewpie is very established when it comes to being used as a dressing for salads or a condiment for burgers, sandwiches and the like, but we believe there are much wider uses for our products in the market beyond the salad bowl,” Kewpie Singapore Sales Executive Wee Xin Yi told FoodNavigator-Asia.
Nestle highlights home cooking and MAGGI brand as key growth drivers for Asia and Oceania
Nestle believes there is significant growth potential for its flagship Maggi brand by tapping into home cooking solutions and smaller meals.
MAGGI is well-known worldwide as an instant noodle and cooking solutions brand, and its level of recognition is particularly strong in what Nestle calls Zone Asia, Oceania and Africa (AOA) which contains the entire Asia Pacific region as well as Africa.
“MAGGI is for us a powerhouse in Zone AOA, with unmatched presence across 113 countries and our data indicating products being used in some 297 million households here,” Nestle Zone AOA CEO Remy Ejel said.
“Its brand power is very much rooted in local culture and local R&D expertise and manufacturing – MAGGI has the number one market share in important markets such as India, Malaysia and more."
Mengniu hopes to beat ‘industry turbulence’ via premiumisation, ASEAN-driven growth
Chinese dairy giant Mengniu hopes to overcome reduced local demand with premium innovation and an increased focus on overseas markets.
Mengniu recently announced its FY2024 full year financial results, reporting a decrease of 10.1% year-on-year in revenue to CNY88.7bn (US$12.2bn) as well as a significant drop of over 95% in profits for the year to CNY224.6mn (US$30.9mn) from CNY4.9bn (US$660.4mn) the previous year.
The firm attributed these declines to the impact of losses incurred by subsidiary Bellamy’s Organic in Australia (estimated at between CNY3.8bn to CNY4bn / US$522.8mn to US$550.4mn) and China Modern Dairy (estimated between CNY1.35bn to CNY1.55bn / US$185.7mn to US$213.3mn).
“Despite facing the challenges of weak domestic demand and industry turbulence [leading to] a negative impact on net profits, adjustments in [the past year] have enhanced stability and improved the visibility of Mengniu’s sustainable and healthy development,” the firm stressed in its final FY2024 financial results press release.
Thailand’s Buono taps ready-to-heat street snack authenticity to draw global consumers - Watch
Thailand-based Buono has prioritised authenticity and convenience in the innovation of its ready-to-heat (RTH) street foods range.
Buono has a strong focus on non-meat analogue plant-based products, and is particularly well-known for its fruit-flavoured ice creams and other frozen desserts.
The firm has now set its sights on innovating based on Thailand’s strong street snacks culture, and to maximise the potential of this venture it has underlined a strong focus on maintaining the authenticity of these creations.
“Authenticity is very crucial when focusing on these products because Thailand’s street food and snacks culture is very strong, so many consumers both local and international are familiar with these,” Buono Assistant CEO Bee Suparavarasuwat told FoodNavigator-Asia in the latest edition of our FNA InnovATE video series.
“Our first creation in this range has been frozen ready-to-heat Thai coconut pancakes Kanom Krok, a street food that every Thai consumer knows.
Keeping up with trends, evolving preferences key to attracting new-age consumers – Roku Gin
Suntory-owned Roku Gin says it is important to keep up with trends and evolving preferences to capture young consumers and draw alcohol enthusiasts back into the gin category.
While consumers today are exposed to a wider repertoire of how gin is presented in different occasions or serve formats, the category remains perceived to lack excitement in terms of innovation.
Furthermore, despite a growing white spirits category, particularly for tequila, gin growth is expected to soften and will maintain a conservative single-digit growth in years to come.
This is according to Leanne Kee, Senior Brand Manager (Premium Spirits) for South East Asia (SEA) at Suntory.
“In order for us to appeal to new curious drinkers or to recruit alcohol enthusiasts back into the category, it is essential to keep up with trends to understand their motivations behind alcohol consumption and the drivers that will spur their appreciation of gin.
“Historically, we’ve always showcased our brand and product offerings through the bar community. The growing cocktail culture and sudden spike in demand for gin craft cocktails also championed the growth of the category within SEA, particularly Singapore and Malaysia.
