Export adventures: Thailand’s MAMA targets overseas instant noodle markets with local flavours and premium positioning
MAMA is one of the most well-known instant noodle brands in Thailand with presence in well over 60 markets worldwide as well as hundreds of SKUs including a healthier range which we reported on previously.
Despite its widespread coverage, the brand believes that there is still immense scope for instant noodles growth, especially in the export market, and has developed its new range to focus on this.
“This new series Thai ConNext by MAMA will combine the premium ingredients used in our domestic premium range OK with the use of very Thai flavours made to be very authentic,” MAMA parent company Thai President Foods Assistant Export Manager Chano Tingpalpong told FoodNavigator-Asia at the recent ThaiFex-Anuga Asia 2024 trade show.
“This is a range meant for export markets, and the focus on Thai recipes is meant to appeal to consumers that appreciate our local cuisine from street foods to spicy soups.
“There will initially be three flavours in this range: Tom Kha which is a coconut-based soup with herbs; Panang which is red curry, and Boat Noodles – the first two will use the same premium noodles as in the OK range, and the Boat Noodles will use rice noodles to give an added gummy texture and chewiness for those seeking that.”
These instant noodles will require boiling for several minutes to desired consistency as opposed to the cup noodles that only need the addition of hot water, in line with its more premium tagline.
“We believe this range has strong potential to grow in overseas markets as we see many consumers wanting Thai street food, but also wanting premium products – both of these together are actually one of the growing instant noodle trends we have seen in the market,” he added.
“We are also making a play on the affordability aspect here, as based on our expertise we are able to sell consumers a premium product for a lower price point, hence increase our competitive advantage amongst other brands in the export market.”
Future plans
In addition to pure exports, MAMA also has plans to expand its production in factories outside Thailand in order to cater to a rising global demand for instant noodles.
“We currently have four overseas factories which are in Myanmar, Cambodia, Bangladesh and Hungary, but major expansions are planned in the short term,” he added.
“These will include new plants to be built up in Myanmar and Cambodia, as well as new production lines in Hungary so that we can increase our offerings there from the current four flavours - a bottleneck we are still seeing there is that we still need to ship over our seasonings from Thailand, and we want to improve the production here so as to increase our market in that region.
“Furthermore, we are seeing a trend of logistics still being quite complicated, not only being expensive but also with space on containers being hard to get, so it makes sense for us to increase local regional production as much as possible especially with our presence on practically every continent worldwide.”
