Arla Foods Ingredients Opens an Office in Singapore

Arla Foods Ingredients' products for the Asian market mainly fall within the nutrition category, i.e. milk powder for infants and proteins for protein bars for sports people.

22 Oct 2009 --- Arla moved into its new office in Singapore. With Brian Bonde, General Manager at Arla Foods Ingredients, at the helm, the office is now set to develop Arla Foods Ingredients' market in Asia.

”There is a large untapped market in Asia with many opportunities for developing our business,” Brian Bonde points out as he embarks on a new stage in Arla's operations in Asia.

Nutrition is important

Arla Foods Ingredients' products for the Asian market mainly fall within the nutrition category, i.e. milk powder for infants and proteins for protein bars for sports people.

”There is considerable focus on healthy products for both children and adults here," explains Brian Bonde "and that fits in perfectly with our range."

As Asian customers in general are open to new and innovative products, there is an added advantage in the fact that milk proteins offer many as yet unexploited opportunities. ”The time from the launch of a product to actual sale is considerably shorter when we're dealing with local customers than with our multinational customers who are often controlled by the West and can, therefore, be slightly more cautious,” Brian Bonde says.

Service is important

One of the reasons behind the opening of the Singapore office is to get closer to customers so that product launches can happen more quickly.  A local presence is, therefore, important. ”It's always easier to get Asian customers to call a number in Singapore rather than one in Denmark," he says.

Brian Bonde is confident about the future prospects of Arla Foods Ingredients' presence in Asia.