Nam Duong International Food Co., Ltd.: 73 years of preserving the "Identity" of Vietnamese brands | Entrepreneurs | Finance

The products of Nam Duong International Food Company Limited have a strong Vietnamese brand identity and spread to many countries around the world .

The Black Cat Ship - True to its reputation

Nam Duong is famous for its soy sauce (consumers call it "Tau vi yeu") with the Black Cat logo. The product has been loved by generations of Vietnamese consumers since its appearance in 1951, because of its delicious and distinct flavor.

Nam Duong products are trusted because they always prioritize quality.

In 1951, Mr. Tan Trieu Long - a native of Chaozhou, established the Nam Duong Soy Sauce Factory in Ben Binh Dong (Cho Lon - Saigon), with the original name "Black Cat Soy Sauce Factory - Nam Duong", using "Cat Head" as the brand name. In the 1960s, Black Cat Soy Sauce spread throughout the Southern and Central provinces.

Since 1962, Black Cat - Indonesia opened its first factory in Phnom Penh (Cambodia). Products are consumed in all 16 provinces of Cambodia. Black Cat - Indonesia continued to build a second factory in Vientiane (Laos).

In 1981, the Black Cat - Nam Duong Soy Sauce Factory was assigned to the Ho Chi Minh City Trade and Purchase Cooperative Union - Saigon Co.op for management, with the new name "Nam Duong Fish Sauce Factory".

At that time, Nam Duong's infrastructure was very degraded, the distribution network was almost gone and there was only one soy sauce product. Unable to lose a brand that already had a foothold in the market, Saigon Co.op quickly reorganized its human resources, increased technical staff, invested in upgrading factories and machinery... to streamline the production process and increase product quality.

From an initial product, Nam Duong now has many more products such as: chili sauce, pepper sauce, sweet and sour sauce... In particular, soy sauce has many types: mushroom flavor, ginger flavor, chili garlic flavor... Nam Duong has a great advantage of relying on the distribution channel of the Co.op Mart supermarket system (belonging to Saigon Co.op) to bring products to consumers.

On October 27, 2015, Saigon Co.op and Wilmar Group officially entered into a joint venture to establish Nam Duong International Foodstuffs Company Limited (NDFC).

The company's initial charter capital was over VND152 billion, then increased to over VND328 billion. Of which, the Ho Chi Minh City Union of Trading Cooperatives (Saigon Co.op) contributed over VND160 billion, equivalent to 49%; SITEKI INVESTME NTS PTE LTD contributed over VND167 billion, equivalent to 51%. The joint venture opened up a new face and development scope for Nam Duong.

Wilmar Group is well-positioned to help Nam Duong develop. This is a group with strong production management, with 500 factories worldwide. Two large research centers in Shanghai and Singapore, helping to perfect quality management and product development capabilities. Wilmar's distribution system is widespread, with 170,000 retail points in Vietnam alone and a presence in 40 countries around the world.

Expanding partnerships, bringing products to the West

In 2017, the new NDFC factory was launched and put into operation, with a total investment of up to 25.6 million USD, capacity of 50,000 tons/year. The factory is located in Hiep Phuoc Industrial Park (HCMC). The factory has modern facilities, meeting high standards of quality and food hygiene and safety.

NDFC factory has been granted certificates of food hygiene and safety quality and social responsibility by prestigious international organizations: AIB, FSSC 22000, SEDEX SMETA, ISO 14001:2015, FDA. The total production capacity of the factory is 90,000 tons for sauce and spice groups such as: soy sauce, chili sauce, tomato sauce, seasoning powder, mayonnaise...

NDFC products are widely distributed in Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia with famous branded products such as: Nam Duong, Meizan, Neptune, Simply and private label products in supermarket systems. NDFC has cooperated with many international importers and distributors to export products under private labels or NDFC brands to countries such as: USA, Canada, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Australia, Russia, ...

Nam Duong soy sauce with the brand name "3 cats" has a long tradition and has been exported to many countries.

Nam Duong has received many awards such as: "High Quality Vietnamese Goods" for 18 consecutive years, Golden Star of Vietnam (2005), Green Enterprise for good environmental protection (2012), "Best Vietnamese Soy Sauce Flavor 2019" awarded by Culture Magazin (Canada)...

Mr. Ho Diep Anh Khoi - General Director of NDFC - said: "We are proud of the brand heritage and the continuous improvement of the company's team over the years. We continue to strive on the research journey to create quality products with delicious flavors to conquer the diverse tastes of users. We believe that spices are not just ingredients but also contain identity and culture. That is why we want to say: Nam Duong - Vietnamese flavor".

Recently, Nam Duong continues to launch a new product - Meizan MSG. Meizan MSG has been launched on the market since September 2024 and is being positively received by consumers, thanks to its good product quality and reasonable price. Currently, the product is distributed at supermarket branches such as: Co.opmart, Go, Bach Hoa Xanh and retail stores nationwide.

Mr. Khoi added: "Meizan MSG products ensure to fully meet the quality and food safety standards of the Ministry of Health . In accordance with the National Technical Regulation on food additives - flavor enhancers issued in Circular 18/2010 of the Ministry of Health and Decree 15/2018 of the Government, detailing the implementation of a number of articles of the Law on Food Safety".

Staff carefully check each package of Nam Duong MSG before packing.

The cooperation between Saigon Co.op and Wilmar Group has allowed Nam Duong to use famous brands such as: Meizan, Simply, Neptune... Therefore, over the years, millions of Vietnamese consumers have become very familiar and trusted with Nam Duong's product chain such as: Soy sauce, cooking oil, seasoning powder, MSG...

In 2024, Nam Duong Company is determined to register quality and brand, meeting a series of requirements from the FDA (USA). Thanks to that, not only soy sauce, a series of Nam Duong products have been officially exported to the US.

Regarding development orientation, Mr. Khoi said: "In the coming time, Nam Duong Company will continue to expand the domestic market and reach beyond the border. We are also planning to launch a product line that restores the original, pure Vietnamese taste of Con Meo Den soy sauce from the past, 50-60 years ago."

Source: https://diaoc.nld.com.vn/cong-ty-tnhh-thuc-pham-quoc-te-nam-duong-73-nam-gin-giu-ban-sac-thuong-hieu-viet-196241202134126299.htm