US-based Ball to commence construction in October at Thilawa SEZ

Yangon- US-based Ball Corporation has set October to construct its production plant for beverage can becoming the first US investment project at Thilawa Special Economic Zone, said Min Tala Nyan, the company’s country manager.

“We have not finished land preparation during the monsoon. At the end of the rains, we can start construction work. We hope the construction can begin in October,” said the country manager.

The investment project was unveiled at the signing ceremony for the memorandum of understanding on June 6.

Myanmar to hold int'l food, beverage fair in Yangon

YANGON, July 4 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar will hold the first international Food and Beverage exhibition at Myanmar Convention Center in Yangon from July 24, the Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry announced on Friday.

Jointly organized by the Thai Chamber of Commerce, Board of Trade of Thailand and ICVeX Co., Ltd, the three-day exhibition will feature manufacturers, suppliers and brands mostly from Thailand to promote their food and beverage lines of products ranging from raw ingredients to finished products.

Myanmar's Gradual Embrace Of The Coke Trade

An illicit trade in Coke was quietly sustained for more than 60 years inMyanmar, serving the country’s elite and providing a living for a few bold smugglers. Only the wealthy could afford to shell out as much as $2.99 for a red can smuggled in from neighboring countries and sold in the country’s very few posh restaurants and five-star hotels.

Despite Coca-Cola ’s status as perhaps the world’s most ubiquitous product, available in some 200 countries, until two years ago it remained off-limits to most citizens of Myanmar. In fact, Myanmar was one of only three countries in the world in which the famous sugary soft drink was not legally available. Now there are only two: Cuba and North Korea.

But in September 2012, Coca-Cola made its first delivery to local customers. When the United States lifted its sanctions against the country in 2012, in response to political and economic reforms, Coca-Cola was the first foreign company to enter the country. In the post-sanctions liberalization, Myanmar became the world’s last capitalist market to embrace Coca-Cola.

Myanmar: Paradox of alcohol restriction and lack of awareness

In the absence of effective state action against the sale and consumption of dangerous bootleg alcohol in Myanmar, civil society and NGOs should play an active role, says John Smith Thang.

According to an Irrawaddy magazine report, on average Burmese presently drink less than four litres of alcohol per year—that’s only about 10 small bottles—of local brand beer, which for many people on low pay, is still a luxury drink.

In neighbouring Thailand, annual per capita beer consumption is 25 litres and in Vietnam it is 30 liters (The Irrawaddy, Thursday, 7 March 2013).

78 more foreign-invested firms arrive this year

Singapore, Japan and South Korea continue to be the top sources of foreign investment in Myanmar this year, with companies from the three Asian Tigers leading the way among the 78 foreign invested firms given permission to invest in Myanmar in the fist five months of this year.

Companies from Hong Kong, Thailand, Indonesia, China, Malaysia, Taiwan, Sweden, India, Brunei and Laos followed suit.

Two types of foreign investments were allowed: 100 per cent foreign-invested firms and joint ventures with local partners.

Vietnamese investors’ rising interest in Myanmar

More than 50 business groups from Vietnam have been conducting market research in Myanmar in order to look for investment opportunities, said Pho Nam Phuang, director of Investment and Trade Promotion Centre, on Friday.

The research is being conducted at shopping malls and supermarkets in Yangon and Mandalay, she said in the press conference at Union of Myanmar Federation of Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

“The research will cover customer’s habits and obstacles to Vietnamese companies operating in Myanmar. The results would be submitted on relevant ministries in coordination with UMFCCI," said Myo Thant, joint secretary general of UMFCCI.

Toyo radiator plant to locate in Thilawa SEZ

Toyo, a business conglomerate from Japan, will invest and construct its plant for car radiators in Thilawa special economic zone, said Ichiro Maruyama, minister-counsellor at Japanese embassy.

“Japan’s leading manufacturer for motor parts is preparing to build its plant in Thilawa SEZ. Myanmar Japan Thilawa Development is in talks with the company. The plant would be established in Myanmar. Raw material would be imported from Japan for the production of vehicle spare parts,” he said.

US-based Ball Corp to invest in Thilawa SEZ

Ball Corp, the American beverage cans manufacturer, will invest US$40 million to build its plant at Thilawa special economic zone, according to the company’s announcement on Friday in Yangon.

“We are a leading manufacturer of steel and aluminium cans,” said a company official.

The company signed a lease to set up its business in the zone which is a Myanmar-Japan joint venture.

Living well in Myanmar: eat local, eat right

In this column I’ve frequently written on the importance of diet and exercise in a long and healthy life. To prevent disease and disability, a primary care doctor has no therapy as potent as a healthy lifestyle. What you eat and how much you move your body impacts all aspects of your health, from cardiovascular function to cancer to psychological sharpness.

The five fundamental aspects of a healthy lifestyle are: 1) eating vegetables, beans, nuts, fish and olive oil, 2) not smoking, 3) exercising 90 minutes per week, 4) not becoming overweight and 5) drinking a glass of alcohol every day.

In Yangon we might add carrying a flashlight at night so you don’t fall through a hole in the sidewalk.

Burma: Open for business

Since Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, invited overseas investment into the country, international brands are eager to get a foothold. Maida Pineda reports

I headed to Myanmar for the first time in June 2012. But unlike my visit to other Asian countries, this one required special preparation. Before departing for Yangon (the country’s biggest city and commercial centre), I was advised to bring pristine US dollars as there were no ATMs or foreign banks. Only flawless, unblemished, fold-free US notes were acceptable for exchanging for local currency.

New Pepsi bottling plant opens

Pepsi-co and LOTTE-MGS Beverage Co announced last week that for the first time since 1997, Pepsi is being produced and bottled inside Myanmar. According to a joint-statement, the newly opened factory is only the first of many the soft-drink giant plans to open in the near future.

While the group’s factory is only producing bottled Pepsi at the moment, plans are in motion to produce aluminum cans in the coming months. A joint-statement released by the two companies describes the plant as “a key pillar in each company’s long-term commitment to the consumers, customers and communities of Myanmar”.

Coca-Cola to Suzuki Myanmar Factory Rush Spurs Shipping: Freight

Coca-Cola Co. (KO:US) and Suzuki Motor Corp. (7269) are among companies pushing demand for transportation of machinery to Myanmar to bottle drinks and make trucks, after the country’s five decades of isolation during military rule.

Coca-Cola, which opened a bottling plant in Myanmar last year, plans to invest $200 million over five years while Suzuki restarted production of trucks last year after leaving the market in 2010. Asahi Group Holdings Ltd. (2502), Japan’s biggest beermaker, said this month it’s forming a venture to start operations there this year.

Myanmar developer Yoma sees long road to ASEAN integration

(Reuters) - Myanmar-focused conglomerate Yoma Strategic Holdings Ltd (YOMA.SI) said Southeast Asia needs to work exceptionally hard to realize a balanced, European Union-style integration of such disparate economies.

Yoma is listed in Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member Singapore whose advanced island-state economy contrasts with that of fellow member Myanmar, rich in gems and natural gas but paralyzed by decades of military rule and isolating sanctions.

Elsewhere in ASEAN, communist Laos has an economy that is less than 3 percent the size of that of monarchist neighbor Thailand, according to The World Bank. The population difference would suggest a size of 10 percent.

Focus on the food chain

For Hsing Ho the best business approach is to think globally and act locally – an approach the recently opened DuPont operation in Myanmar plans on taking seriously as it turns its eye and expertise toward the fragile food chain in the long isolated nation.

“We believe that as a global company there is a lot to be learned at each locality. The local characteristics are unique for example in the farming community, uniqueness around the weather, the soil, the conditions and so on and so forth that is very locally based,” Mr Ho said at the launch of DuPont in Myanmar.

Alcohol consumption increasing in Myanmar

YANGON—The rate of alcohol consumption is rising in Myanmar, with local production of beer, wine and spirits at more than 25 million gallons annually, according to the local reports.

Tens of thousands of gallons of wine, beer, and hard alcohol—both legal and illegal—are being imported from foreign countries and are now penetrating the local market.

There are state-owned beer and wine factories in Myanmar, but the Myanmar Investment Commission has also allowed permits for foreign beer companies to operate here, subject to scrutiny by respective state and regional government authorities.

Young blood: Myanmar returners make a splash

Thazin Wah – Bo to friends and customers, and her customers are always her friends – arrives for work at 7am and leaves at 11pm. As the owner and sole employee of her small Thai restaurant, Green Gallery, which opened last November on 52nd Street, just steps from Maha Bandoola Road, the hours are long but necessary, and they bring their own rewards.

For Thazin, the job is a dream beginning to take shape. After 14 years living under a secret identity in Thailand, in April 2013 the 28-year-old returned to her native Myanmar – a path many others have and will follow.

Asahi to enter Myanmar in new soft-drinks deal

Beverage manufacturer Loi Hein is to partner with the Japan-based Asahi group to form a major new soft-drinks company in Myanmar. Subject to approval by the Myanmar Investment Commission, Loi Hein would take 49 percent of the company, in which Asahi would invest about ¥2.3 billion (US$22 million) to acquire a controlling 51pc share.

U Sai Sam Tun, who founded Loi Hein in 1992, said he expected MIC approval within weeks.

Myanmar inspects Thai firm's juice for coliform

Thailand-based FoodStar's juice is subject to examination by Myanmar's food-safety authorities for alleged contamination with coliform and mould, Eleven Media reported.
According to lab results from the Myanmar Ministry of Cooperatives, samples of coliform and mould have been found in DeeDo juice.

If consumed, the inedible fungus in the food can cause massive intestinal and stomach cancers, said Ba Oak Khine, chairman of that country's Consumer Protection Association.

Singapore-Listed Yoma Expands Into Coffee in Burma

SINGAPORE — Singapore-listed Yoma Strategic Holdings Ltd plans to set up what it says could become the biggest coffee plantation in Burma, hoping the frontier economy has the potential to develop a strong coffee industry.

The Burma-focused property conglomerate, led by chairman Serge Pun, said on Tuesday it has signed a deal to set up a joint venture to establish a coffee business with ED&F Man, a global agricultural trader.

Yoma will hold an 85 percent stake in the venture, which is expected to require up to US$20 million of investment over four years. Its target will be to plant 3,700 acres of coffee.

Parliament rejects 200% tax increase on tobacco and alcohol

NAY PYI TAW—The Union Parliament on Monday (March 10) rejected a private member’s bill that proposed a 200 percent tax increase on tobacco products and alcoholic beverages.
Members of parliament voted instead to maintain the current “vice tax” rates. Myanmar currently imposes a 100-percent tax on cigarettes and a 50-percent tax on other tobacco products and alcohol.

National League for Democracy MP Khin San Hlaing (Pale Township) said the number of drinkers is on the rise in Myanmar, resulting in more crimes and alcohol-related health problems. She added that tobacco usage increases healthcare costs for the country by causing more cases of cancer.