The Knowledge to Decide

Xianjiang Wang Yuan Camel Milk Co Ltd is one of the crucial players responsible for China’s camel milk boom. The company maintains over 20,000 milking camels in Fuhai. No longer just a ship of the desert, the milk of the camel has become sought-after for its perceived medicinal and “beauty” value. Wang Yuan has over 500 outlets across the country, located in every province in China except Tibet. Wang Yuan’s revenues have grown to USD34 million in 2016 – a 15% increase over 2015. The company recently added a USD13 million research and development extension to its factory in Fuhai, and a new factory in Inner Mongolia has kick-started trial operations. Will camel milk production become a viable industry across the globe? https://www.spireresearch.com/newsroom/spirethoughts/chinas-booming-camel-milk-industry/

China is set to open a government-sponsored ‘cloning park’ in early 2016, with a goal to produce 100,000 cloned cattle annually. This is because Chinese farmers are not able to meet market demand for beef cattle. Clones ensure a reliable and regular supply. Interestingly, a report highlights the average calorie intake of a person has increased from 1,863 to 3,074 calories – with a major chunk coming from animal calories. China’s meat demand coincides with a tax recommended by U.K. researchers on meat to deal with rising demand along with health and environmental issues that are synonymous with meat consumption and production. Will cloned meat be able to meet rising market demand? https://www.spireresearch.com/newsroom/spirethoughts/china-opts-for-cloned-cow-meat/

Oils prices are at a record low due to increased oil production in Saudi Arabia – the world’s largest oil producer. Nevertheless, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) refuses to budge on production cuts amidst falling oil prices. This could have a ripple effect on the U.S. shale oil industry, which is now facing a risk of a market share battle with OPEC. Oil production in U.S. shale fields is more expensive. Stabilization in oil prices through production cutbacks would generate some relief for them. U.S. shale output will remain the major source of new oil supply by the end of the decade. U.S. oil production was set to rise to 11.6 million barrels a day in 2020 – from 9.2 million in 2012 – making the U.S. the top oil producer by 2015. However that projection was made before the current low oil prices wrought havoc on the shale oil industry. It remains to be seen if U.S. shale oil drillers can recover from the ongoing price war with OPEC countries.

Indonesia is the world’s third largest aquaculture producer. What business prospects lie in Indonesia’s aqua farming industry? Spire Research and Consulting was honored to be a sponsor and speaker at the Indonesia Norway Business Council (INBC) Salmon Evening in Jakarta – an event aimed at exploring trends and potential business opportunities in Indonesia’s aqua farming industry. At the event, Franklin Crum, Manager, Client Service of Spire Research and Consulting, spoke about aqua farming and the untapped opportunities in this industry. He remarked that Indonesia, being the third largest aquaculture producer worldwide (trailing closely behind China and India), saw an average annual increase of 30.9% in aquaculture production volume from 2009 to 2012. Crum commented that opportunities in aqua farming are abundant. There is an increasing demand for high-value fish species such as snapper, grouper, pompano and barramundi as well as rising supply of fingerlings (young fish) for

Experts have commented that the annual fires in Sumatra and haze pro https://www.spireresearch.com/newsroom/media/sustainable-palm-oil-production-remains-hazy/ blem can be reduced through concerted efforts on the ground. All stakeholders can play a part in adopting sustainable sourcing practices. Leon Perera, Chief Executive Officer of Spire Research and Consulting, gave his two cents on how palm oil companies can take the necessary measures to avoid such haze problems. As with previous years, there was much large-scale burning in many parts of Sumatra during this time of the year. With the winds during the Southwest Monsoon, smoke and unhealthy particulates from the burning vegetation would inevitably head towards Singapore and Malaysia. As such, many palm oil and pulp companies were facing increasing pressure to put an end to such traditional slash-and-burn practice – a method to clear land cheaply. Hence, large companies should be responsible for educating and providing the

The haze from annual fires in Sumatra, which worsened disastrously in 2013, has focused regional and global attention on making palm oil production sustainable. Industry leaders are facing increasing pressure from governments and consumers to prove that their palm oil sourcing practices are sustainable. Leon Perera, Chief Executive Officer of Spire Research and Consulting, shared his views on how the palm oil industry was adapting to these new realities. Large-scale burning in many parts of Sumatra remains an annual affair. The winds of the Southwest Monsoon circulate smoke and unhealthy particulates from the burning vegetation towards Singapore, Malaysia and many parts of Indonesia itself, such as Sumatra and the Riau islands. Aside from the public health problem it creates, the haze has drawn global attention to the environmental disaster of replacing rainforest with palm oil plantations in Sumatra and Kalimantan in an unsustainable way. Palm oil companies are facing increa