May 23, 2008

Thai seafood processor plans new facility to secure raw material supply
 

Pacific Fish Processing Co (PFP) is planning to invest at least THB 300 million (US$9.4 million) to set up a seafood processing facility in an ASEAN country.

The company is looking for a partner and potential site for the facility, possibly in Malaysia, Indonesia or Vietnam, according to managing director Thawee Piyapatna.

The investment, which is meant to secure future supplies of raw materials of surimi or minced fish meat, is expected to take place within this year.

The company needs to acquire new raw material sources from overseas due to domestic supply shortage, said Piyapatna.

Due to a lack of domestic supplies, PFP had imported more raw materials from various countries, including Vietnam, India, Japan and the US.

In addition, PFP plans to increase total sales by 10 percent to THB 2.9 billion (US$91 million) this year, with THB 1.8 billion (US$56.4 million) coming from overseas markets such as Eastern Europe and China. The company also plans to enter the Middle East and Indonesian markets.

PFP is Thailand's leading fully-integrated food business specialising in the production of frozen seafood and a wide array of processed value-added products made from fish paste, widely known as Surimi (Minced Fish Meat).