Netherlands woos Thai stakes in food business
Thai enterprises have been urged to set up businesses in the Netherlands, particularly in the agricultural and food industry, as it is one of the strongest sectors and is showing high growth despite the European Union financial crunch.
Nico Overbeeke, senior adviser for agriculture and food at the Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency (NFIA), said the industry was one of the most recession-resistant in the EU.
The Netherlands, which has a strong base in the farming and food industry and suffered less from the crunch than other nations in the euro zone, is one of the most attractive destinations for Thai and Asian investors.
Overbeeke met executives of leading Thai food enterprises to discuss investment opportunities in his country. He declined to name the companies. In addition to discussions with Thai enterprises, Overbeeke will also fly to meet investors in Malaysia and Singapore during this trip.
He said the Netherlands welcomed large, small and medium-sized enterprises. The country could serve as a production base, a research and development centre, and a gateway for shipment to other European nations, he said.
Many Thai enterprises, especially those involved in poultry, fish, meat and vegetables, have a lot of opportunity to grow in the Netherlands as Thailand has high expertise in the industry, he said. The demand for food is growing strongly in the Netherlands and Europe-wide.
He sees Thailand as having a lot of potential to deliver goods to the EU and even being a major food supplier to the market if Thai investors opted for value-added products favoured by EU consumers.
Although the EU has little available land for farming, the Netherlands could offer greater opportunities for Thai food industries’ development as it is a centre for R&D for the industry.
According to the NFIA, some of the world’s largest food companies are Dutch, and of the world’s 40 largest food and beverage companies, 12 have their regional headquarters and/or R&D centre in the Netherlands.
The Dutch government offers tax reductions for innovative activities. Thai and other foreign enterprises can have 100-per-cent ownership, while the corporate income tax rate is 25 per cent, lower than the average rate of 30 per cent in other countries.
To produce goods in the Netherlands, investors will enjoy a single standard requirement to access other European countries. Enterprises will only need to change the language on their products label.
Peter van Zanten, trade and investment adviser to NFIA Thailand, said many Thai food enterprises now had a greater opportunity to grow overseas because of the weaker euro and strong baht.
Thai investors who have their own product brands should increase market penetration in the EU by setting up plants in the Netherlands and other European countries, van Zanten added.
