Macau a food gateway
Dah Chong Hong Ltd, a wholly owned warehousing subsidiary of China's Citic Group, is to join with Thai authorities to establish a coordination office to help promote the export of Thai fresh fruit to markets in China.
This former Portuguese enclave, now a special administrative region of China, is a potential gateway for Thai exports of fresh fruit and processed foods to the massive markets of southern China. Caretaker Commerce Minister Somkid Jatusripitak announced yesterday that Dah Chong Hong would not only help promote Thai fruit, but also spa-related products and processed food, via its channels that penetrate markets in China. The Commerce Ministry will act as an intermediary for supplies of Thai fresh fruit to Dah Chong Hong, whose distribution channels will transport the fruit to Guangzhou. To complete a fully integrated logistics network linking Hong Kong and Macau to markets in China, another wholly owned Citic subsidiary, Sims Trading Ltd, will provide a one-stop logistics service. Chief executive for Dah Chong Hong's trading group, Alex Chu, said linkages between Hong Kong, Macau, and Southern China complemented each other and created an opportunity for Thai exporters to ship their products to a fast-growing market with a huge combined population. He said China was also opening up for imports, and products with the most potential included healthy, hygienic, and processed food. Dah Chong Hong's major clients are importers of seafood and fresh food products, which are aimed at supplying the local hotel and tourism industries. In 2005, there were about 75 hotels in Macau and the number is expected to increase to serve an estimated 20 million tourists per year. Sims Trading, which is considered a leading provider of third-party logistics services in Hong Kong and China, has more than 200,000 square metres of ambient and refrigerated warehousing space. It is also a leading importer and distributor of food, healthcare, and household products in China, Hong Kong, and Macau. The company has two logistics centres in Hong Kong and nine centres in the Chinese cities of Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Beijing, Xinhui, Shenyang, Chendu, Xian, and Nanjing. Sims Trading's general manager for business development, Ken Chung, said his firm would help importers to effectively distribute products to their retail partners.
Sasithorn Ongdee The Nation Macau
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