F&N aims to maintain leadership in dairy products

Fraser & Neave (F&N) Holdings Bhd aims to maintain its leadership in the dairy, ready-to-drink and soft drinks segments, while strengthening the brand name in Malaysia, its Chief Executive Officer, Datuk Ng Jui Sia said Wednesday.

The company will invest and focus more on its consumer products, distribution and facilities to enhance product quality, he told a media briefing here today on Fraser & Neave Holdings' first half financial year 2013 results.

He said F&N will also strive to maintain its 60 per cent market share for the dairy products segment, between 30 per cent to 35 per cent for the ready to drink products and 85 per cent for soft drinks.

"We are planning to launch a new product, the Oishi Green Tea in June this year, and are confident of attracting buyers with this new beverage. We are now number one in the green tea segment with an over 30 per cent market share," he added.

Ng said the company is the main player at present in South East Asia and plans to strengthen its presence in Asia in the coming years.

Meanwhile, F&N's pre-tax profit increased to RM65.58 million for the second quarter ended March 31, 2013, compared with RM57.69 million in the same period last year.

Revenue also rose to RM882.06 million from RM730.42 million previously.

The company said the better performance was mainly due to the recovery in Dairies Thailand, combined with a strong performance from the group's perennially performing soft drinks division.