INDONESIA – UK-based producer of multisectoral ingredient solutions, Tate & Lyle PLC has opened its new Customer Innovation and Collaboration Centre in Jakarta, Indonesia.
The opening marks an important milestone in Tate & Lyle’s growth strategy to expand its presence in the Asia Pacific region, and Indonesia specifically, into which it has been supplying for over a decade.
With the new centre, a combined office and laboratory, Tate & Lyle aims to support healthy living in Indonesia through food science and ingredient solution innovation.
At the new center located in Central Jakarta, Tate & Lyle customers will create new or reformulated, on-trend food and drink products that meet local needs and preferences.
Tate & Lyle’s local technical, commercial and sales experts based at the new centre, and the customer they partner with, will also continue to be supported by its global specialist network of nutrition, regulation, and application experts.
Nick Hampton, Tate & Lyle Chief Executive, who opened the new centre at the inauguration event, said: “As a global company that has been operating since 1859, Tate & Lyle is an expert in helping food and drink producers to make tasty food healthier and healthy food tastier.
That’s why we’re excited to open our Customer Innovation and Collaboration Centre in Indonesia, one of a 17-strong global network of labs.”
He further noted that the local team will help food and drink producers to tap into the company’s leading ingredient portfolio and unmatched ability to formulate across the intersection of sweetening, mouthfeel, and fortification.
Together the teams will be able to co-create foods and drinks with less sugar, fat, and calories and with the added nutritional benefits of fiber and plant protein, Hampton said.
This is Tate & Lyle’s latest investment in Asia Pacific, following the company’s acquisition of a leading stevia business in China in 2020, a tapioca-modified food starch manufacturer in Thailand in 2021, and a China-based global leader in prebiotic fibres in 2022.
Assisting the food industry in Indonesia is timely as at least 13 percent of the Indonesian population suffers from diabetes, with the potential for a significant increase each year.
The investment thus underscores Tate & Lyle’s commitment to enabling healthy eating and supports the efforts of the Indonesian Ministry of Health in preventing diabetes.
Dr. Gerry Murphy steps down as Chair of the Board
Meanwhile, Dr. Gerry Murphy has decided to step down as Chair of the Board of Tate & Lyle, a position he has held for more than six years, a statement from the UK-based company has confirmed.
According to Tate & Lyle, Dr. Murphy is leaving to take up the position of Chair of the Board of Tesco but will remain Chair of Tate & Lyle until 1 September 2023.
Pending the appointment of a new Chair, the Board has appointed Warren Tucker, currently Chair of the Audit Committee, as Interim Chair of Tate & Lyle from 1 September 2023.
The Board has begun a process to appoint a successor to Dr Murphy. Mr Paul Forman, Senior Independent Director, is leading this process and a further announcement will be made in due course.
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