Roquette opens new Asia Pacific Headquarters and an Innovation Center in Singapore

Published: 26-Oct-2017

These new facilities will be focused on Food, Nutrition and Pharma to better address eating habits and health concerns of Asian consumers

Roquette, a global leader in innovative plant-based ingredients, has opened new offices and an innovation center in Singapore, increasing its focus on Asia’s nutrition and health challenges.

The state-of-the-art facilities that include a research laboratory, customer technical services as well as the new regional headquarters, will allow Roquette to tailor its products and address the specific health and dietary challenges of the region such as obesity or diabetes.

The new facilities will complement Roquette’s existing research and application centers in the Americas, Asia and Europe and will allow the company to partner with customers, universities and research institutions, such as Singapore’s Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) or the National University of Singapore. They will reinforce Roquette’s expertise to support customer innovations in food, nutrition and pharma.

 

Jean-Marc Gilson, CEO of Roquette, said: “As a global business leader, we know that we need to adapt our solutions to the specific needs of the different markets. By expanding our international research capability, we can ensure our products contribute to improving health and well being of millions of consumers around the world. Our facilities in Singapore will allow us to explore new ways to address specific health and nutrition needs of Asian customers and consumers through plant-based ingredients such as sugar alternatives, vegetal proteins or pharmaceutical excipients, among many others.”

The more than 1,100 sqm innovation center is located in Biopolis, an international research and development hub in Asia Pacific for fast-growing sectors such as food and nutrition, biomedical sciences, bioengineering and medical technology. It adds to Roquette’s existing presence in Asia that includes a large commercial presence in many countries and several sites in China, India and South Korea.

Talking about the choice of this location, Jean-Marc Gilson added: “Singapore’s connectivity with countries throughout Asia makes it the perfect place to locate these new facilities which will be a key part of our global network. The talent and skills of Singapore professionals are impressive and our local team will make a big impact. We are looking forward to foster closer collaboration with our customers and partners as well as further develop our business activities in the region and continue to invest in Asia over the next few years.”

Mr Lim Chuan Poh, Chairman of A*STAR, said: “Having developed a strong base of public R&D capabilities and infrastructure, Singapore is currently home to the R&D centres of some of the world’s largest food, nutrition and pharmaceutical companies to drive innovation for Asia and beyond. The strategic expansion by leading companies like Roquette is testament to Singapore’s reputation as a world class Research, Innovation and Enterprise hub and A*STAR’s strategy of public-private partnerships under the Open Innovation Framework to create value and good jobs in Singapore.”

The burgeoning middle class throughout Asia and their distinct tastes and requirements underpin Roquette’s decision to continue growing its presence in the area. At the same time, rising health consciousness and consumer concerns over sustainability across the region create an increased demand for Roquette’s plant-based products, such as new protein sources.

This announcement in Asia, the world’s fastest growing region, follows a series of recent global investments by Roquette into North America, Latin America and Europe, and will help propel the future growth of the company’s food and pharmaceutical businesses.

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