Cargill invests in Thailand featuring automation, AI

Cargill plans to boost its cooked poultry operations in Thailand, with investment in capacity expansion and automation.

The US-based, privately-owned meat giant is ploughing Bt2bn ($60m) into the Southeast Asian country, partly due to "global protein demand".

Cargill said the investment includes a new automated production line for cooked chicken products at its poultry site in the city of Saraburi, less than a two-hour drive from the capital Bangkok.

Completion is set for an unspecified date in 2028, according to a statement from the Minnesota-headquartered business.

Work is also already underway to build a 30,000-metric-ton grain silo for chicken feed at Cargill's facility in Nakhon Ratchasima province in Thailand's north-east region known as Isaan.

Situated near an existing feed mill, Cargill said the new site will "enhance raw material storage capabilities and provide greater flexibility in grain procurement throughout the year, while creating additional income opportunities for local farmers beyond the traditional harvest season".

That project is due to be completed in December.

In a statement, Watcharapon Prasopkiatpoka, Cargill's VP and poultry managing director for APAC, said: "Demand for high-quality protein continues to grow across global markets, and customers are looking for reliable innovation partners who can help them scale with confidence.

"This investment strengthens our ability to deliver poultry products with the quality and consistency our customers need."

From Thailand, Cargill exports cooked poultry products to foodservice and retail customers in other Asian destinations, including Japan, along with Europe and North America, the company said.

With the investment at Saraburi, cooked poultry volume is expected to increase to around 160,000 metric tons, providing Bt25bn in additional export revenue and creating 300 local jobs.

"The investment encompasses capacity and efficiency enhancements across Cargill's entire poultry network to help strengthen supply chain resilience, and enhance food safety, quality and innovation," the company added.

Cargill said some of the investment will be channelled into "advanced technologies" such as AI, as it seeks to "optimise both production processes and costs".

Over the next two years, AI will be deployed into data processing for faster and "more accurate decision-making", and also to assist with food quality and safety management, it said.

Cargill explained its investment package will "help improve procurement of domestic raw materials and services, including feed ingredients, grains, seasonings and packaging".