Food & Beverage

China Resources Beer (Holdings) is making the Heineken brand a pillar of its growth strategy. (Photo by Shin Watanabe)
Food & Beverage

China's breweries thrive despite COVID-19

Profits hit record highs at top beer makers on successful plant reorganizations

3 October 2020
Foodpanda recently launched operations in Japan, starting in six cities, including Yokohama and Fukuoka.
Startups

Delivery Hero bets on Asia as COVID fuels food-delivery fight

Foodpanda operator expands with Japan launch and South Korea buyout

2 October 2020
This dumpling is made with lab-grown shrimp meat that now costs $300 per kilogram to produce.
DealStreetAsia

Shiok Meats raises $12.6m as it refines faux shrimp

Singapore startup endeavors to lower cost of its minced product to $50 per kg

2 October 2020
Serving up kawaii: Employees at Maidreamin, a maid cafe in Bangkok, show off their cat pose. (Photo by Yukako Ono)
Life

Thais seek to re-create the 'real Japan'

Love affair with Japanese culture intensifies amid thirst for authenticity

2 October 2020
Men drink beer on the street in Hanoi. The maximum fine for drunk driving on motorcycles has doubled to $340.
Food & Beverage

Vietnam's top beer maker Sabeco loses its fizz

Earnings take hit from pandemic and crackdown on drunken driving

2 October 2020
Separated saffron stigmas are collected on a plate next to the flowers during the drying process in the Kashmiri village of Pampore, the "saffron capital of India." 
Life

Red gold: The rich tradition of Kashmiri saffron

1 kg of the prized spice can fetch as much as $4,000

30 September 2020
Wilmar has a distribution network covering more than 50 countries and regions with its largest operations in China. 
Food & Beverage

Singapore agribusiness giant Wilmar joins China IPO rush

Core subsidiary to raise $2bn in Shenzhen listing partly from state funds

24 September 2020
OmniPork is a minced pork substitute made of soy and rice. (Photo courtesy of Green Monday)
Food & Beverage

Asia's Green Monday raises $70m for plant-based food growth

Swire Pacific and TPG among latest backers of Hong Kong group

22 September 2020
Kirin Holdings plans to roll out Japan's first sugar-free beer in October. (Source photo by Kirin and Takaki Kashiwabara)
Food & Beverage

Japanese brewers shift focus to offset coronavirus damage

Kirin to launch sugar-free beer, while Sapporo goes online

19 September 2020
With a market cap of more than 2 trillion yuan, Shanghai-listed Kweichou Moutai is controlled by a wholly owned subsidiary of the provincial State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) in Guizhou province.
Caixin

China's Moutai comes to home province's rescue with bond purchase

Deal shows how a local government can leverage a profitable state-owned business

18 September 2020
The Foodpanda delivery service has begun operations in six cities in Japan. (Photo courtesy of Delivery Hero)
Companies

Foodpanda enters Japan's untapped food delivery market

German company seeks market share by promising shorter waits

18 September 2020
Kura Sushi plans to open 50 stores in Taiwan within three years. (Photo from the company's Facebook account)
Companies

Kura Sushi goes all in on Taiwan, citing island's COVID response

Japanese conveyor belt chain to open 50 stores in three years after $17m IPO

18 September 2020
Saizeriya, a restaurant operator known for low-cost Italian meals, will start opening new outlets that are 60% the size of its existing eateries.
Food & Beverage

Japan's Saizeriya bets on downsized restaurants amid pandemic

The chain known for finding profits with low prices struggles with distancing

15 September 2020
Clear sake has taken a page from the computer chipmaking industry, relying on other companies to make its luxury-brand beverage while marketing through its own website and social media.
Food & Beverage

Startups rewrite rules of traditional Japanese sake

Upstart brewers look to expand beverage's global appeal via new taste and tech

12 September 2020
A KFC restaurant in Shanghai. Traders and analysts attributed subdued appetite in Hong Kong for its shares to the fact that Yum China is not a high-growth, technology stock.
Markets

Investors show distaste for Yum China's Hong Kong debut

First-day stock fall for KFC operator may discourage some secondary listings

10 September 2020
U.S. restaurant chain Red Lobster will come under control of Thai Union, the world's largest canned tuna manufacturer. (AP Images)
Food & Beverage

Thai Union to increase control of US seafood chain Red Lobster

Buyer wants to tighten procurement process, develop new products

9 September 2020
An Ootoya restaurant in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward. (Photo by Kosuke Inoue)
Business deals

Japan restaurant sector set for more M&A after first hostile takeover

Colowide looks to reshuffle management and boost efficiency at Ootoya

9 September 2020
The overwhelming response for Nongfu from retail investors soaked up so much cash that the cost of short-term funds, as represented by the one-month HIBOR, surged to a two-month high on Sept.1.
Markets

Nongfu Spring IPO turns owner into China's third-richest

Zhong Shanshan hits jackpot as water bottler's shares gain 54% in Hong Kong debut

8 September 2020
Marubeni employs about 30 certified coffee tasters in Japan and abroad.
Food & Beverage

Marubeni on mission to win hearts and taste buds across the world

From coffee to beef, trading house doubles down on pandemic-proof foods

6 September 2020
The stock of the company operating Quanjude Peking roast duck restaurants has taken a hit since President Xi expressed distress at the country's gastronomic gluttony. 
Markets

China restaurant stocks go cold with Xi's 'clean plate' campaign

Customers prompted to stop wasting food as political season kicks off

6 September 2020
Yum China, operator of KFC restaurants in the country, plans to use proceeds from its Hong Kong secondary offering to expand and deepen its restaurant network, and invest in digitalization and its supply chain.
Markets

Yum China to raise $2.2bn amid lukewarm Hong Kong demand

KFC operator's stock offering priced at greater discount than peers

4 September 2020
The coronavirus pandemic has boosted demand for South Korea's emerging delivery market but it has also pushed up costs.
Business trends

Startups vs chaebol: Inside South Korea's delivery wars

Competition heats up as coronavirus drives demand for meal and grocery services

3 September 2020
An Olam pepper plantation in Vietnam. The Singaporean trading house handles cocoa, coffee, spices, edible oils and cotton along supply chains that span more than 60 countries.
Interview

Cotton and rubber demand recovery more than 2 years off: Olam CEO

Singapore trader says supply chain and logistics disruptions have bottomed out

31 August 2020
Shin-Etsu Chemical will produce an ingredient for vegetarian meat patties like this in Germany. (Photo courtesy of Shin-Etsu)
Food & Beverage

Japan materials group Shin-Etsu bites into plant-based meat

Exclusive: Company to produce key ingredient in Germany for Western brands

31 August 2020
Spring Valley beer is served up at the brand's brewery in Tokyo's fashionable Daikanyama district. (Photo by Makoto Okada)
Food & Beverage

Kirin takes Japanese craft beer to Taiwan in export push

Brewery looks overseas as domestic demand remains limited

29 August 2020