Sats' tie-up could see pre-packaged S'pore dishes sold in Japan outlets

Correspondent TOKYO, Japan In time to come, pre-packaged Singaporean food favourites such as chicken rice, mee goreng and laksa could be sold in Japanese restaurants and supermarkets, bringing hawker fare to a wider audience.

- Mike Yeo

This could soon become a reality, as Singaporean in-flight caterer and ground handler Sats announced a strategic partnership with Mitsui on Aug 23 to expand its presence in Japan.

The partnership will see Mitsui take a 15 per cent stake, with an investment of $36.4 million in Sats Food Solutions India, Sats Food Solutions Thailand, Sats Tianjin in China, and Sats subsidiary meat distributor and processor Country Foods.

This comes a year after the two companies signed a memorandum of understanding to explore opportunities for collaboration in the food and retail sectors, and is the latest move in Sats' efforts to diversify its food business from just supplying in-flight meals.

Mr Stanley Goh, chief executive of Sats Food Solutions, said that teaming up with Mitsui would help spur demand for Sats' products in Asia and also help Mitsui in its goal of providing value-added services to customers.

"We will work together to utilise the production capabilities that Sats has in these countries, particularly in China and India, to meet the demands of Mitsui's customer network," he said at the announcement of the partnership at its subsidiary Sats TFK's in-flight kitchen facility in Tokyo's Narita Airport.