R&D work bears fruit for coconut producer and exporter

The goal was to increase penetration of the local market, as well as to enhance the company’s export growth.
As a result of its R&D work, the company launched coconut by-products including pudding, 20 flavours of soft ice cream, Snow Flake and other desserts under a new brand, All Coco, eight months ago – supplying both the domestic and export markets.
Kemtas Manusrungsri, managing director of K Fresh, which harvests and exports aromatic coconut, said that due to the unpredictability of coconut output, the company decided to invest in R&D to create new products from a fruit with which it had been intrinsically involved for more than 10 years.
“Coconut is not just a fruit, as we can add more value to this product. With our strength in having naturally aromatic young coconut, we have developed many products from coconut juice and flesh to serve consumers in both the domestic and international markets,” he said.
All Coco products are now sold in leading department-store supermarkets, such as Gourmet in Siam Paragon, EmQuartier, Central Rama II and Central Lat Phrao.
The company uses coconut’s strengths to promote its products as health desserts, being non-dairy, containing no cholesterol, and low in both sugar and calories.
In terms of adding value, while a whole aromatic coconut costs Bt40-Bt50 per fruit, one scoop of ice cream alone costs Bt45, while a 12-ounce (355-millilitre) glass of Snow Flake is Bt79 and a pudding sells for Bt59.
The company has a bright future, thanks to constant innovation and rising demand for coconut and by-products overseas, said the managing director.
K Fresh aims to generate revenue of Bt500 million this year, 25 per cent higher than the roughly Bt400 million achieved last year.
Around 98 per cent of the company’s income is from the export of coconut, with the remainder from the domestic market for coconut and other products.
Sales of coconut products under the All Coco brand will continue to grow significantly in the coming years, given their good response from the market, he said.
With rising sales, the company has invested about Bt200 million to expand its plant for making by-products from coconut. The new facility will commence operations in August.
Meanwhile, the company is also looking for a franchise partner to serve its business-expansion plans, he added. K Fresh initially focused its business on the production of coconut-palm sugar, before shifting to concentrate on fresh aromatic coconut exports.
Its produce comes from Ban Peaw in Samut Sakhon, as well as from nearby provinces that are well known for the quality and aromatic nature of their coconuts.
The company exports to more than 30 markets, including the United States, Canada, European countries, Russia, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, mainland China, Japan and South Korea.
Kemtas said Thai aromatic coconut was very popular internationally because of its sweet fragrance and flavour, as well as its health benefits.
K Fresh grows coconut palm on about 10,000 rai (1,600 hectares) of land in four provinces, with some of its operations conducted under contract farming, he added.