Tetra Pak cracks on with coconut research
Tetra Pak has completed a £33 million (€42m) investment to upgrade and expand its operations in Singapore, including a state-of the art new building and Coconut Knowledge Centre.
The investment, says Tetra Pak, is designed to meet customer needs across the growing Southeast Asian market and to improve the company’s competitiveness in other parts of the world.
“The objective is to build market and technology expertise that will extend our leadership in coconut beverage innovation,” says Rusty Kekuewa, Tetra Pak vice president, South and Southeast Asia. “This will be very important for our customers in the region who are growing their local markets and expanding sales abroad, particularly in the US.”
Coconut water is a popular beverage in Asian countries but has generated increasing interest and sales in developed countries in recent years as a sports and health drink. Global coconut water consumption is expected to increase, driven mostly by the United States. Meanwhile, volume sales of coconut water in Tetra Pak packages have grown by an average of 26 per cent annually from 2007 to 2011.
“The Coconut Knowledge Centre will provide technology and innovation support to customers; build knowledge of coconut products such as water, milk and cream; develop new recipes and expand knowledge sharing among its international network of coconut experts,” adds Kekuewa.
