NXPO participated in Vitafoods Asia 2025, Asia’s leading event for functional ingredients and dietary supplement products and solutions, held on 17–19 September 2025 at the Queen Sirikit National Convention Center. The event served as a key platform for strengthening the region’s supplement and nutraceutical industries, while also raising international recognition of Thailand’s production standards. It provided opportunities for Thai agencies to engage and collaborate with global players in the food and supplement sectors. The fair featured over 600 exhibitors and attracted more than 12,000 visitors.
On 18 September 2025, NXPO hosted the Vitafoods Asia Healthy Summit with a seminar titled “Fireside Chat: Investing in Thailand – A Partner to Excel in the Future Food Industry.” Moderated by Mr. Phira Chaochaloemphong, NXPO Policy Specialist, the discussion brought together representatives from the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI), InnoSpace Thailand, and the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC) Office—key organizations driving Thailand’s future food sector. The dialogue explored ways to strengthen cooperation in advancing functional ingredients, FoodTech, and AgriTech, with the aim of adding value to Thailand’s economy and positioning the country as both a regional and global hub.
The FTI highlighted the potential of Thai herbs such as ginger, Thai black ginger, and marigold, which contain bioactive compounds that can be developed into functional ingredients for export. It also introduced strategic initiatives such as the National Product Champions program and the adoption of a QR code system to authenticate products, prevent counterfeiting, and enhance export credibility. These measures are expected to generate up to three times more value compared to exports of raw agricultural materials.
InnoSpace Thailand presented its role as an intermediary linking innovation with capital, through partnerships with more than 16 public and private organizations—including PTT, BDMS, ThaiBev, CP Group, and NIA. Leveraging Thailand’s rich biodiversity, ranked among the top 20 globally, InnoSpace aims to foster the development of functional foods, alternative proteins, nutraceuticals, and circular economy solutions. Its initiatives include supporting testbeds and co-investment mechanisms for startups and new entrepreneurs.
The EEC Office outlined its EEC Agri-Food Hub development plan, which focuses on four main clusters: fruits, shrimp, bioenergy crops, and herbs. This hub will be underpinned by advanced research infrastructure such as the EECi Bio-Polis and a bio-refinery plant for industrial-scale development of functional ingredients and nutraceuticals. To attract investment, the EEC offers incentives, including tax exemptions of up to 15 years and special visa and land ownership privileges for foreign investors and experts.
Collaboration among these organizations reflects Thailand’s steady progress toward becoming the Future Food Innovation Hub of ASEAN—an endeavor that not only improves incomes for farmers and SMEs but also drives a new economy aligned with NXPO’s policy for advancing the country’s future food industry.
On 19 September 2025, Dr. Suthipapun Tumhom, NXPO Policy Specialist, delivered a talk on “The Innovative Ingredient: Building Thailand’s Future Food Economy.” She highlighted that Thailand’s future food industry is projected to reach 500 billion THB by 2027, comprising 220 billion THB in exports and 280 billion THB in domestic sales.
“Thailand is rich in agricultural and herbal resources, but until now, exports have focused on low-value commodities. By developing functional ingredients, the country can transition into a high-value health food economy and compete globally,” Dr. Suthipapun stated.
The initiative aims to upgrade raw materials such as rice, cassava, coconut, coffee, tea, cocoa, turmeric, and black ginger through technologies including extraction, bioprocessing, and clinical analysis. These enhanced resources will serve as foundations for functional foods, health beverages, alternative proteins, and dietary supplements.
In addition, NXPO and its partners—including the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Program Management Unit for Competitiveness (PMUC), the Agricultural Research Development Agency (ARDA), and the Food Innovation & Regulation Network (FIRN)—are advancing the creation of a Positive List for Other Function Claims. This initiative will streamline product registration with health claims, with a target of 150 approved claims by 2027. The measure will deliver broad benefits: SMEs will be able to innovate faster and at lower costs; consumers will gain wider access to health food choices; farmers will achieve better prices for their crops; and research institutes will have greater opportunities to translate their findings into commercial applications.
By advancing research, industry, and markets for functional ingredients—both from natural sources and biotechnology processes—Thailand is well-positioned to become a regional hub for future food and health innovation.
