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Introduction
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- Instant noodles were introduced into the Thai market
over 25 years ago.
- Few foods can match the appeal of instant noodles –
long shelf life, convenience, low cost.
- This market has matured and is stable.
- Overall, market growth is slow.
- The market is becoming highly segmented with products
differentiated by,
- Flavors – catering to cultural groups – i.e strong
flavours for Thailand, milder ones for Europe
- Religious – Halal products are available from most
the major noodle producers
- Cup noodles – high end market
- Children packs
- Mini packs – can be made in a mug
- Retort pouches – only for export market
- Companies producing instant noodles do so for the
domestic market and for export.
- Most companies are looking at exports for growth.
- The major proportion is for domestic consumption.
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Description
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- Instant noodles are sold in packs or cups.
- The basic noodle is supplemented by a soup mix.
- Varies flavors are available, the most popular:
- Tom Yum
- Chicken soup
- Duck
- Varies Traditional Thai soups/curries
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Size
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Bt 8 billion /yr equivalent to about 2 billion (50 gram)
packs.
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Major players
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- Nine companies control the business, the largest for the
two main segments are:
- Package noodles - Thai
President Foods Plc – (Mama Brand – 60%)
- Cup noodles – Nissin
Foods (Thailand) Co. Ltd.
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Raw material issues
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- Production costs are sensitive to the price of palm oil.
- Gums and stabilizers are often used in instant noodles
– carrageen, CMC, modified potato starch - these
are added to compensate for variation in wheat flour
quality and improve the re-hydration rate.
- Wheat flour is imported.
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International trade
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- Exports are mainly to: Australia, Canada, France,
Germany, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Singapore, UK, and USA.
- Price of Thailand's top seller Mama has fallen in export
markets due to parallel imports.
- Companies export about 10 – 15% of their production
capacity.
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Trends/ recent news
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- This sector is becoming increasingly segmented as high
value products are introduced such as cup noodles or
specialty products released such as children's packs and
diet (noodles containing chitosan) noodles.
- Sale of instant noodles at retail outlets dropped by
between 20 – 30% from mid 1997 to year-end 1998.
- Consumption is slowly on the increase again.
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