Zhanjiang Guolian Aquatic Products has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Tandes, Surabaya, Indonesia-based Bumi Menara Internusa that will see the two firms cooperate on shrimp sourcing and processing.
The agreement was one of several signed by Guolian at a recent exhibition of food ingredients targeted at the e-commerce sector in China. Guolian also signed a strategic cooperation agreement at the event with JD.com, a popular online shopping platform for which Guolian will supply pre-prepared meals.
Describing itself as the “Shrimp King,” Guolian used the trade fair, held in Wuhan, to launch a series of newly processed shrimp products, including packaged, ready-to-eat meals. The company has, in recent years, pivoted its operations to the convenience food sector, becoming a major supplier to the fast-food sector while also launching its own ready-to-eat range of meals.
In March 2024, Guolian announced the termination of a memorandum of understanding between it and Saudi Arabia’s state-run Public Investment Fund (PIF), which would have seen the latter pump financing into Guolian.
Shrimp has become increasingly affordable for Chinese processors due to a glut in imports.
Chinese shrimp imports totaled 97,144 tons in January 2024, up 59 percent year over year, according to data collected by shrimp trading house Roda International. Combined, Chinese shrimp imports in January and February were up 19 percent year over year to a new record of 157,377 tons. However, prices earned by shrimp exporters from Ecuador – China’s top supplier – dropped to a new low of USD 4.36 (EUR 4.05) per kilo in January and February. China imported 114,717 tons of shrimp from Ecuador in January and February, up 20 percent on the same period in 2023.
The cooperation agreement could help Bumi Menara Internus secure ...
