PETpla.net Insider 07 / 2017

BOTTLE MAKING 16 PET planet Insider Vol. 18 No. 07/17 www.petpla.net Tour Sponsors: Processing and bottling high-quality edible oils by Kay Barton bottle making Cai Lan Oils & Fats Industries Co., Ltd. (Calofic), part of Wilmar CLV March 31, 2017 We met: Mr Peh Ping Teik, Head of Technical, Wilmar CLV Mr Nguyen Tuan Anh, Plant Manager, Calofic Mr Trinh Tuan Anh, Consumer Pack/Deputy Manager, Calofic Mr Nguyen Van Son Em, Consumer Pack/Plastic/Deputy Manager, Calofic You can find vegetable cooking oils with the brands Nep- tune, Simply or Meizan everywhere you look in Vietnam. They are produced by Cai Lan Oils & Fats Industries Com- pany Ltd (Calofic), a joint venture between Vocarimex (Viet- nam Vegetable Oils Industry Corporation) and the Singa- pore-based Wilmar group which began in 1996. Calofic runs a refinery and packing plant in Ha Long, located around 170km to the east of Hanoi, as well as another factory in Ho Chi Minh City. Production began in the north just one year after their joint venture began, whereas production in the south began in 2007. Following our last visit in 2010, we have had yet another chance to get together with Mr Peh Ping Teik, Head of Technical in their Ho Chi Minh City office, after- wards taking a 20km journey to their factory. “Our capacities have more than doubled since PETplanet last paid us a visit,” Mr. Peh began. “90% of our consumer products are now bottled in PET and our edible oil sector is experiencing an annual growth rate of 10-15%.” Calofic produces and fills approximately 200 million bottles per year, as such, with a market share of 50%, they are the largest producer in the market in term of output. PET bottles are used in 0.25l, 0.4l, 1l, 2l, 5l and 10l sizes. A small proportion of their products is bottled in pouches or large containers with up to 25kg in HDPE containers. The company sources PET material from neighbour- ing countries tax-free. Their northern factory uses 2 x Sidel SBO 8, Sidel 2XL, Serac SBL (four cavities) and a Husky HyPET injection moulding line (72 cavities). According to Mr Peh, they work in close cooperation with Bericap in the cap sector. An example of their collab- orative work includes the development of a new one-piece hinge cap which took place five years ago. In contrast to our last visit, Calofic are now set- ting their sights on hard preforms. In this way, they shifted their focus to producing bottles with a premium image. In their Ho Chi Minh City factory, 300 employees work across 85,000m 2 of floor space. The premises have direct access to the river, meaning raw materials, such as palm oil, can be delivered by seaway. The mate- rial comes from countries including Malaysia, Indonesia and Argentina on a cargo ship and we had the chance to witness a palm oil delivery from Malaysia during our visit. Besides the brands mentioned above, Calofic also produces Cai Lan, Kiddy and Orchid on-site. There are some imports of cooking oil in consumer packs, but compared to the total edible oils market, the volume of imports is minimal. The company’s best-selling packaging is the 1l bottle. According to estimates, a typical family consumes an average of 2l of edible oil per month in big city, with an estimated annual consump- tion nationwide of around 9-10kg per capita. www.calofic.com.vn HCM plant info: Investment: US$ 91 millions Preform injection: Unique injec- tion moulding 96 cavities (UPET) Blowing: Sidel SBO 2F, SBO 10, SBO 12, Sipa SFL 4/3, Serac SBL 4 cavities Filling: Serac and Techital. P.E. Labellers for hot melt label Palletising : PSS, Vepro Peh Ping Teik at his downtown office