Expansion of overseas operations is the focus for Charoen Pokphand Foods Plc (CPF) now that the Thai economy has reached its "turn-around stage" said Adirek Sripratak, president and chief executive officer of Thailand's largest listed food processor.

 

The investments are distributed as follows:

• THB500 million for a chicken processing factory in Turkey,
   
• THB500 million for a livestock feedmill factory and hatchery farm in Tamil Nadu and Pune, India,
   
• THB1 billion for a feedmill and integrated pig business in Lukhovitsy County, Moscow, while,
   
• the remaining allocated investment funds are for expansion of operations in Malaysia, the Philippines and Laos.

Sripratak said expansion of foreign operations would lift sales overseas at a time when the economy is poor at home.

 

At the end of last month, CPF officially launched its feedmill and integrated pig business in Lukhovitsy County in Moscow, run by Charoen Pokphand Foods (Overseas) Co.

 

The company's feedmill mainly produce feed for pigs, chicken and cattle with a capacity of 240,000 tonnes a year.

 

Sripratak said that apart from the feedmill, the company plans to invest US$100 million over the next five years in animal feed and farming businesses in Russia.

 

CPF plans to produce one million pigs per year by 2014.

 

Russian demand for pork is currently 2.75 million tonnes annually while local animal production capacity is only 2 million tonnes.

 

Sripratak added that the company would look to invest in Ukraine and Eastern Europe after Russia.

 

US$1 = THB34.244 (June 9)