Cargill has started building a cocoa processing plant in Indonesia to meet regional demand for cocoa products.

The US agribusiness giant said the facility, based in East Java, is expected to be up and running by the middle of next year.

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“We have seen a significant growth in demand for cocoa products amongst our customers across the region. This investment will enable us to support the growth of the local cocoa sector, process local Indonesian beans and provide high-quality cocoa products to serve the growing needs of our customers in Asia,” Jos de Loor, president, of Cargill’s cocoa and chocolate business, said.

Cargill said the plant will create around 200 jobs in Indonesia and other positions in Kuala Lumpur and Beijing, where the company has R&D centres.

Asia is seen one of the fastest-growing regional markets for cocoa and cocoa products. In December, Barry Callebaut made a statement of its ambitions in the region with a deal to buy Petra Foods’ cocoa ingredients operations. Barry Callebaut said Petra Foods was the largest cocoa company in Asia, with operations across the region, including a plant in Indonesia. The Swiss firm also has a facility in the country.

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