Indonesia palm oil export curbs: An open door for Malaysia?
In the face of Indonesia’s new export controls over commodities such as palm oil, does Malaysia have what it takes to take over as the sector’s new superpower?
Prime Minister of Indonesia Prabowo Subianto announced on May 20 this year that Indonesia will be routing several of its key commodity exports via a state-owned enterprise in order to regain better control over the sales profits from these.
Although ostensibly a beneficial move for the national economy, major concerns still loom over both implementation feasibility as well as the potential impacts on prices of all end-products using or containing palm oil, which makes up an enormous percentage of the current food and beverage sector.
As such, any producer market that may be able to step into Indonesia’s shoes and increase its palm oil exports without requiring companies to go through an additional state-owned facility would arguably stand in good stead to capitalise on these latest developments — and for all intents and purposes this would appear to be Malaysia, which is the second-largest producer of palm oil globally.
Will India’s Sugar Export Ban Shake Up Global Food Markets?
The sugar export ban was announced to a lot of international concern, but real impacts are likely to be lopsided globally. Here’s why
What happens in India should matter to the world sugar market. After all, until its withdrawal from the market in May, India was the world’s second largest sugar exporter, a title since taken by Thailand. So how is all this affecting global trade in sugar and the food companies that rely on a steady supply of the white stuff?
“This isn’t like previous El Niños,” warned Jorge Alvar-Beltrán, natural resources officer at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in June.
Agthia’s ‘world-first dates energy drink’ targets category shake-up
United Arab Emirates (UAE) based Agthia has entered the energy drink category with a world-first invention, attempting to appeal to a modern audience with a major regional ingredient: dates
“Dates are part of the UAE’s history. With Fuell, we are taking that heritage forward into a modern consumer product that speaks to today’s lifestyles and expectations,” Agthia Group Managing Director and CEO Salmeen Alameri said.
How can food firms counter the rising prevalence of Chinese brands?
With a rising number of Chinese brands pushing into Southeast Asia, competitors need to look beyond price to localisation, uniqueness and other strategies
Competing on price alone is not enough to counter the growing influence of Chinese brands, which are increasingly combining affordability with innovation, premiumisation and localisation strategies.
According to data analytics firm Euromonitor, brands seeking to defend market share in Southeast Asia should focus on strengthening unique selling points and accelerating localisation efforts rather than relying solely on discounting.
SWIFT reforms: India’s push for food safety and traceability
India’s recent reforms span ingredient restrictions and digital trade systems aimed at strengthening food traceability and supporting domestic and global trade
Through initiatives such as SWIFT 2.0 and tighter controls on ingredient sources, regulators are strengthening oversight across food supply chains to reduce contamination risks, improve traceability, and protect product integrity.