Mitsubishi’s biotech unit in Brunei eyes Asean
MC Biotech, a subsidiary of Japanese conglomerate Mitsubishi Corporation, wants to export astaxanthin, a substance used in food colourings and other food applications, manufactured at its newly opened facility at Tungku, Brunei, into the Asean markets, a senior company official said.
Astaxanthin is found in most reddish-coloured aquatic organisms including shrimp, salmon and some micro-algae.
In an interview late on Wednesday, Yuki Kaneda, general manager of Mitsubishi Corp’s Brunei liaison office, said the company wanted to leverage on Brunei’s geographical location to reach the Asean markets.
He said Asean had a smaller pharmaceutical sector than other regions where demand for pharmacy products such as supplements are higher.
“It will be a new opportunity for us and a challenge, as the Asean market is not as developed as some of the more established markets such as the US and Japan with regards to the pharmaceutical industry,” he said in Tungku.
He said the 20-million-Brunei-dollar (Bt500-million) facility could produce about 20 tonnes of biomass per annum.
Currently, the plant is operating at 30-40 per cent capacity. “Of course, we are hoping to raise this rate to 100 per cent in due time,” Kaneda said.
He said the company also had buyers of astaxanthin through sales channels in Asia.
