Global agribusiness giant Cargill is adding a new speciality fats production line to its edible oil plant in Port Klang, Malaysia, amid rising demand in the Asia-Pacific region.
The multi-million-dollar investment would add more speciality fat products to the company’s global portfolio, which included a wide range of cocoa butter equivalents, low-trans fatty acid cocoa butter replacers and speciality fats for chocolate confectionery, frying, baking or fillings applications, Cargill said on 31 March.
According to MarketsandMarkets’ 2025 report ‘Cocoa and Chocolate Market – Global Forecast to 2023’, although Europe remains the largest market in the global chocolate sector and North America continues steady growth, Asia Pacific is the fastest-growing region, with its share projected to rise from 19.6% in 2025 to 22% by 2030. The Middle East’s share of the market is also expanding significantly.
Growth in the sector is supported by rising incomes, urbanisation and evolving consumer preferences, driving demand for chocolate as well as bakery products such as pastries and baked goods, according to the report.
“As food producers navigate evolving cocoa and ingredient markets, our expanded speciality fats portfolio strengthens our ability to work with chocolate, confectionery, bakery and dairy customers,” said Kashan Rashid, vice president and managing director, Cargill’s Food Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand.
Cargill’s speciality fats portfolio includes Coconera, a cocoa butter equivalent designed for a wide range of chocolate applications - from coatings for praline shells, nuts, and wafers to moulding chocolate - and Olinera, a non-hydrogenated, non-tempered cocoa butter replacer.
In addition to strengthening its existing portfolio, Cargill said it would be introducing new brands with semi-customised speciality fat blends, including Cargill Bakefry, a frying fat designed for food service and quick-service restaurant operators, and Cargill Bakefill, a speciality fat for fillings such as buttercream and bakery cream.
The Port Klang site – the first within Cargill’s global edible oils network to use speciality fats processing technology – is one of two edible oil facilities operated by the company in Malaysia, which supply customers across Asia Pacific and EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa).
The investment at the site follows Cargill’s US$20M investment in 2020 to expand and modernise the plant.
