STRENGTHENING PAPUA NEW GUINEA’S FOOD FUTURE
STRENGTHENING PAPUA NEW GUINEA’S FOOD FUTURE We catch up with Kevin Wright, Group Marketing and Export Manager at BNG Trading, who updates us on the company’s mission to elevate the local capabilities of Papua New Guinea’s food and consumer production through a nationwide distribution network and expanding brand portfolio Writer: Lucy Pilgrim | Project Manager: Andrew Marjoram
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espite maintaining a clear level of resilience in the face of economic and logistical hurdles, Papua New Guinea’s (PNG) fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry has become more demanding in recent years. Customers are increasingly valueconscious, whilst retailers expect reliable supply, competitive pricing, and stronger promotional support. At the same time, foreign exchange (FX) constraints, freight costs, infrastructure limitations, and the 2 | APAC Outlook Issue 82
high cost of utilities continue to place pressure on imported goods and regional manufacturing. “This environment has reinforced the importance of local production, wider national distribution, and disciplined stock planning,” opens Kevin Wright, Group Marketing and Export Manager at BNG Trading (BNG). “The company has responded by investing in its branch network, cold chain, and manufacturing capabilities, alongside our own-brand portfolio so that we can improve availability
and offer products designed for PNG consumers,” he asserts. Having operated in PNG since 1924, BNG’s growth has been achieved by combining its century-long heritage with a strong willingness to invest, innovate, and take a long-term view. As one of the country’s most established importers, distributors, marketers, and manufacturers of food and consumer products, the company’s nationwide team and customer relationships are fundamental to the business.
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“Whether we are introducing a global brand, manufacturing a local product, opening a branch in a remote market, or developing a new agricultural industry, the objective is the same: to provide dependable products and services relevant to PNG,” he states. “We are proud to be creating employment, building local capability, and contributing to a more resilient food and consumer goods supply chain.” Indeed, BNG represents major
international brands whilst also developing locally relevant businesses across the grocery, beverages, bakery, frozen and chilled foods, cleaning products, personal care, packaging, and food service markets. Through Papua Niugini Freezers, BNG is also a major manufacturer and supplier of meat and smallgoods, supported by a nationwide cold chain. “Our customers include supermarkets, wholesalers, trade stores, hotels, restaurants, bakeries, caterers, institutions, and mining
operations. We supply more than 600 outlets nationally, operate nine branches and distribution points, and employ approximately 1,000 people across the group,” details Wright.
GROWING FOOTPRINT Since last speaking to BNG at the end of 2023, the company has significantly expanded its distribution footprint – a decision that was central to improving product availability outside of its two largest commercial centres. APAC Outlook Issue 82 | 3
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BNG now operates across Port Moresby, Lae, Mount Hagen, Kokopo, Alotau, Kiunga, Manus Island, Goroka, Wewak, and Buka. These locations allow the company to hold stock closer to customers, shorten replenishment timelines, and provide a more consistent service across PNG’s most challenging supply routes. “The Buka operation is a good example: it was established to give Bougainville customers more dependable access to essential food products and the same major brands that were available in Port Moresby. “The network also supports our merchandising teams, customer relationships, and national roll-out of both international and BNG-owned brands,” Wright insights. In parallel, BNG is also expanding its manufacturing capabilities beyond its
established smallgoods and meatprocessing base into a broader range of convenient, locally made goods. These include bakery products such as hot pies and croissants, alongside further developing related ingredients. “Our objective is to produce more
CAN YOU TELL US MORE ABOUT THE GROWTH OF BOTH YOUR INTERNATIONAL AND OWN-BRAND PRODUCTS? Kevin Wright, Group Marketing and Export Manager: “We continue to add selected international brands where they fill a genuine market need, whilst placing greater emphasis on the development of our own. These include SunBrite, 5 Masks, Top Chef, Bakery Delights, Peanutter, and SeaKai. “Although our own-brand products can provide improved profitability, their greater strategic value is in the fact that we control the specification, packaging, pricing, and marketing. This enables us to respond more quickly to PNG consumers’ needs and reinvest in local manufacturing, distribution, and brand development. “We are also working on categories such as instant noodles, biscuits, flavoured water, and additional bakery and convenience products, whilst continuing to strengthen our partnerships with established global suppliers.”
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everyday products in PNG, improve freshness and availability, reduce dependence on imported finished goods, and build local skills and employment,” he notes. To achieve this, the company is planning additional manufacturing capacity in both Port Moresby and Lae, with investment focused on modern facilities and production lines that support national distribution. Despite the major longterm benefits offered by local manufacturing, operating costs in PNG today remain high. “Manufacturers must manage expensive and sometimes unreliable power and water supplies, imported machinery and spare parts, specialist maintenance, freight and packaging inputs, and limited access to FX. “Additionally, imported finished products can arrive at a price that is difficult for a local manufacturer to match, particularly when overseas producers benefit from much larger production volumes,” outlines Wright. The challenge, therefore, is to build sufficient scale, maintain strict quality and food-safety standards, improve efficiency, and source more inputs locally where practical. “BNG views manufacturing as a strategic investment in food security, local employment, and a more resilient supply chain, not simply as a short-term profit margin exercise,” he reflects.
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“ O U R O B J E C T I V E I S T O P R O D U C E M O R E E V E R Y D AY P R O D U C T S I N P N G , I M P R O V E F R E S H N E S S A N D AVA I L A B I L I T Y, R E D U C E DEPENDENCE ON IMPORTED FINISHED GOODS AND BUILD LOCAL S K I L L S A N D E M P LOY M E N T ” – K E V I N W R I G H T, G R O U P M A R K E T I N G A N D E X P O R T M A N A G E R , B N G T R A D I N G
PNG PROTEIN PARK Supporting its expanding capabilities, PNG Protein Park (PX3) is BNG’s agricultural and food-security initiative at Koitaki Farm on the Sogeri
Plateau – just a one-hour drive from Port Moresby. The project is developing the locally adapted sheep-meat industry using improved animal husbandry,
breeding, and feeding systems. The farm includes elevated ‘sheep sheds’ to keep the livestock dry and fodder production using the drought-tolerant Redlands leucaena shrub. APAC Outlook Issue 82 | 5
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“ B N G V I E W S M A N U FA C T U R I N G A S A S T R AT E G I C I N V E S T M E N T I N F O O D S E C U R I T Y, L O C A L E M P L O Y M E N T, A N D A M O R E R E S I L I E N T S U P P LY C H A I N , N O T S I M P LY A S A S H O R T-T E R M P R O F I T M A R G I N E X E R C I S E ” – K E V I N W R I G H T, G R O U P M A R K E T I N G A N D E X P O R T M A N A G E R , B N G T R A D I N G
“Our homegrown ToeaKina sheep are being bred for PNG conditions, with the longer-term aims of increasing domestic red meat production, reducing reliance on imports, and creating opportunities for rural farmers,” Wright informs us. Over the last three years, the farm has expanded its breeding capacity and infrastructure, having now doubled in size. Moreover, the recent birth of lambs from sheep born and raised in the PX3 programme is an important milestone. “It demonstrates the flock 6 | APAC Outlook Issue 82
is adapting, reproducing, and progressing through successive generations under local conditions. We have developed a third generation of sheep and continue to grow the number of breeding ewes, sheep sheds, and managed grazing areas,” he highlights. Going forward, PX3 aims to become both a production hub and practical training centre that can transfer knowledge, breeding stock, and proven systems to participating communities. As such, the project’s next stage
will focus on increasing scale in a controlled way whilst maintaining animal health, genetics, nutrition, and accurate production records. “Our ambition is to build a sustainable breeding hub that can ultimately support a much wider PNG sheep industry rather than simply operating as one isolated farm,” Wright envisages.
STRENGTHENING PRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION Alongside PX3, BNG is investing in several projects that strengthen PNG’s
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supply chain and production capacity. These include new manufacturing facilities and lines in Port Moresby and Lae; continued expansion of cold storage, warehousing, and national distribution; and the development of local food brands tailored to PNG households. The company is also progressing agricultural opportunities involving crops and livestock, alongside expanding export capability through Antap International Pty Ltd to connect PNG-made products with customers across the Pacific. “Through related group businesses, we continue to develop logistics, packaging, food service, and connectivity services that support customers beyond traditional FMCG distribution. Each investment is assessed against the same priorities: reliable supply, local employment, import replacement, and long-term commercial sustainability,” shares Wright.
Looking to the future, BNG’s priorities for 2027 are to continue growing its national distribution reach, improve service levels and product availability, and accelerate the contribution of BNG and PNGowned brands. The company is equally targeting further growth through local manufacturing, stronger execution in stores, and closer partnerships with major customers. Another key focus will be progressing new manufacturing capacity in Port Moresby and Lae, including bakery, convenience, and dry-grocery categories, whilst maintaining the quality and food-safety standards expected across the group. “We also intend to expand PX3’s breeding and training capability, strengthen our export programme, and develop our people so that the organisation has the operational and leadership capacity required for its next stage of growth,” closes Wright.
Tel: +675 303 6500 info@bngtrading.com
www.bngtrading.com.pg
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Tel: +675 303 6500 info@bngtrading.com www.bngtrading.com.pg
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