JAKARTA -- Seasoning producers from Japan are opening factories in Indonesia and Malaysia as they seek to respond quickly to such trends as the diversification of local palates, which are quite different from the preferences of consumers back home.
Takasago International will build its first factory in Indonesia at a cost of about 2 billion yen ($19.5 million). The facility is on a 16,000-sq.-meter site in the Jakarta suburb of Bekasi Regency. It will come on line in 2018, with annual capacity expected to reach 3,000 tons by 2019. The plant will accommodate a Halal diet, which has restrictions on pork-derived substances and alcohol, and will supply Japanese and local food producers.
