Spices are an essential part of Vietnamese cuisine. With a rich and diverse culinary background, Vietnam has many distinctive spices that contribute to the delicious and enticing flavors of its dishes.
According to a report by Euromonitor, the spice market in Vietnam is valued at about 33,500 billion VND, with 64% coming from the dipping sauce segment. Specifically, fish sauce is the leading position with a scale of 15,000 billion VND, followed by soy sauce and chili sauce with scales of 2,800 billion and 2,600 billion VND, respectively.
With the development of the market and great potential, the spice industry is seeing the participation of many large and small enterprises. Spice production companies in Vietnam have diverse manufacturing scales, from large enterprises with foreign investment to small and medium enterprises, and family businesses.
Among them, according to statistics from Vietdata, in the spice market, Masan Consumer – a subsidiary of Masan Group Joint Stock Company, with billionaire Nguyen Dang Quang as Chairman of the Board – is the leading company in this industry, even surpassing many competitors.
Masan Consumer has grown strongly thanks to its wide range of products, including instant noodles (Omachi, Kokomi, Sagami), spices (Nam Ngư fish sauce, Chinsu, Chinsu soy sauce), beverages (Vĩnh Hảo mineral water), and coffee (Vinacafe). The company’s products are not only widely consumed in Vietnam but also exported to many other countries such as the United States, Canada, France, Russia, Germany, and China.
In 2022, this company witnessed record-breaking business results. Specifically, the company generated 27,178 billion VND in revenue and 5,451 billion VND in net profit. Masan Consumer’s revenue ‘dominates’ all other brands, even equal to the total of the 4 companies behind it, including Ajinomoto, VEDAN, Cholimex, and Miwon.
Vietdata states that with Ajinomoto Vietnam, in 2022, this company generated more than 9,000 billion VND in revenue, an increase of over 16% compared to the figure achieved in 2021. Along with the growth of net revenue, the after-tax profit of this company also saw recovery when reaching over 1,000 billion VND in 2022 after a slight decline in 2021.
Ajinomoto Vietnam is a subsidiary of Ajinomoto Group, a Japanese corporation, established in 1991 with an initial investment of over 8 million USD. Currently, Ajinomoto Vietnam has two main offices in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, along with two production plants: Ajinomoto Bien Hoa (operating since 1991) and Ajinomoto Long Thanh (operating since 2008). In addition, the company has three major distribution centers in Long Thanh, Hai Duong, and Da Nang, along with over 62 business branches and nearly 290 sales teams nationwide.
Ajinomoto Vietnam not only produces Ajinomoto seasoning – the company’s main product but also supplies various spices, food, and beverages such as Aji-ngon seasoning, Aji-mayo mayonnaise sauce, Aji-Quick hotpot seasoning, Ume chan salted plum, and Birdy canned coffee.
On the other hand, Vedan Vietnam experienced significant changes in its business situation from 2020 to 2022. Specifically, the company’s net revenue showed signs of stabilizing in 2021 despite a slight increase, and then this figure increased by nearly 25%, reaching over 9,000 billion VND at the end of 2022.
In contrast, Vedan Vietnam’s net profit has sharply declined over the years. Specifically, the after-tax profit of this company was only over 100 billion VND in 2022, a decrease of nearly 85% compared to the same period in 2020.
Vedan is a famous Taiwanese brand established in 1954 and introduced to the Vietnamese market since 1991. This brand quickly gained the trust of Vietnamese consumers with high-quality seasoning products. After many years of operation, Vedan Vietnam Joint Stock Company has built a diverse and comprehensive production system, including starch factories, seasoning powder factories, modified starch factories, and Phuoc Thai Vedan specialized port.
Profit of Masan Consumer also “superior” to foreign brands such as Ajinomoto, Vedan, Miwon.
In 2023, this company continues to break the record it brought in 2022. In 2023, Masan Consumer recorded a net profit of 7,195 billion VND, an increase of 30% compared to 2022. EPS in 2023 reached 9,888 VND/share, a significant increase compared to EPS in 2022 at 7,612 VND/share.
Especially, Masan Consumer’s gross profit margin has risen to nearly 50% for the first time. Specifically, gross profit in the fourth quarter reached 4,017 billion VND, with a gross profit margin of 47.29%, a significant increase from 41.48% in the fourth quarter of 2022.
Masan Consumer’s total assets as of December 31, 2023, are at 40,553 billion VND, an increase of over 7,000 billion compared to the beginning of the year. Total cash and bank deposits reached 8,105 billion VND, an increase of over 2,315 billion VND compared to the beginning of the year.
In 2023, the “Go Global” strategy with the highlight of the CHIN-SU brand has brought many positive results for Masan Consumer. Export revenue increased to 1,005 billion VND in 2023, an increase of 13.6% compared to the same period last year. In particular, in the US market, CHIN-SU chili sauce maintains its position in the top 8 best-selling products on Amazon. Accordingly, from 2020 to 2023, the total export turnover achieved a strong compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 31%.
