Health focus: CP Foods targets 30% of healthy products for NPD with opening of new research centre

13-Feb-2019 - Last updated on 13-Feb-2019 at 01:19 GMT

Thai food manufacturing giant Charoen Pokphand Foods PCL (CP Foods) is targeting 30% of its new product development (NPD) this year to be focused on healthy food products. ©CP Foods

Related tags Cp foods Npd Research

Thai food manufacturing giant Charoen Pokphand Foods PCL (CP Foods) is targeting 30% of its new product development (NPD) this year to be focused on healthy food products.

It hopes to achieve this goal with the aid of its newly-opened food innovation, research and development centre, which will focus on developing and delivering ‘nutritious and safe foods at world-class quality’.

Current R&D foci include food biotechnology and sustainable packaging development. The former sees the use of enzymes and microorganisms in enhancing product quality, whereas the latter looks at the minimisation of CP Foods’ environmental footprints, especially in plastic use.

According to Sukhawat Dansermsuk, CP Foods Co-President and CEO - Food Business: “Increasing of health conscious and food safety demands have prompted the company to plan for more healthy goods which [which will make up] 30% of its new products this year, following the United Nation Sustainable Development Goals.”

He added R&D was ‘vital’ in NPD, and that the new research centre would aid in ‘significantly accelerating and improving innovation processes to encourage CP Foods researchers [to] achieve their full capabilities’.

Products will be developed ‘in line with global demand’, for a wide variety of consumers of all ages including ‘foods for patient and elderly people such as food and drink for insomnia’, said the official CP Foods statement.

The first quarter of the year will also see the company launching its new line of ‘Smart’ products. These will include Smart Meals (high-fibre, high protein, no-preservatives-added vegetarian foods), Smart Soups (healthy, all-natural soups), Smart Sauce (Sriracha sauce made with premium ingredients) and Smart Drinks (functional fruit juices to aid with insomnia).

The FDA-certified centre is dubbed the ‘CP Foods RD Center’, and comprises two facilities: An R&D complex, and a pilot plant. Valued at some THB1.35bn (US$42.9mn), it also boasts energy-saving features such as a solar roof and solar-powered hot water facilities.

Sustainability pledge

Earlier this year, CP Foods also made headlines for committing to 100% sustainable plastic packaging in all of its local units, complementing its sustainable packaging policy pledging 100% of its plastic packaging being made of sustainable materials by 2025.

CP Foods Co-President and CEO (Agro Industrial Business) Sooksunt Jiumjaiswanglerg said: “[We have] been working on the way to find alternative substitutes to single-use plastic materials, especially in the hotspot areas where plastic packages are frequently used such as feed mills, aquaculture farms and food processing plants.

“[This is in line with our aim] to be a responsible company with an environmental friendly value chain.”

The CP Foods RD Center is expected to contribute significantly to this effort with the development of new sustainable packaging options.