Industry Tobacco, Agriculture Products Tobacco, Organic rice Founder Yunfeng Han Number of employees 300 (2010) | Area served Worldwide Headquarters Amsterdam Founded 1998 Type of business Private | |
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Key people Yunfeng Han (President)
Gerard Van Hattem (CEO)
Peter Lee (Executive Director)
Qiang Ai (Executive Director)
Koen Monkau (Executive Director) Divisions Production, Agricultural engineering, Trading, Marketing, Supporting functions Subsidiaries Hanchen Tobacco Europe B.V
Netherlands
Hanchen Tobacco International Ltd
Taiwan
Hanchen Agriculture Holding Ltd
Hong Kong
Hanchen Agriculture Cambodia Ltd
Cambodia
Hanchen International Trading Ltd
Macau
Hanchen Agriculture Guangzhou Ltd
China
China Representative Office of
Hanchen Tobacco Europe B.V.
China | ||
The Hanchen Group was founded in Amsterdam, Netherlands in 1998, as an enterprise engaged in tobacco and related industries. Hanchen focuses mainly on the growing, processing and marketing of tobacco, organic rice and other agricultural products, as well as trading in leaf tobacco, cigarettes, and tobacco packing materials. Hanchen Group is the owner of two cigarette brands: 'Hakka' and 'Penang', which are mainly sold in Taiwan and Southeast Asia.
Contents
Corporate history
During its history, Hanchen Group has been dedicating itself to the international trade of leaf tobacco and cigarette packing materials. In 2008 Hanchen Group initiated a tobacco growing project in Muse, Myanmar, near the Chinese border. The size of the site is 80 hectares. Following the success achieved in the Myanmar project Hanchen Group decided to expand its production. In 2010 the company signed a long term rental agreement for 10,000 hectares of farmland in Cambodia, to develop large scale agricultural plantations. As well as growing tobacco, Hanchen Group is farming organic rice and certain other crops there. The company intends to develop ecological and sustainable Macro-Agriculture in the area, making use of advanced and latest agricultural technologies. The project is designed on the basis of vertical integration, combining crop growing, processing, trading and distribution. Hanchen Group is also targeting the growing international market for ecologically grown food products.
Market
The 'Hakka' and 'Penang' cigarette brands enjoy a growing reputation and popularity in Taiwan. In 2009, these 2 brands gained a combined market share of 1.25% in Taiwan. The annual growth rate has been around 10% and further improvement in market share is anticipated. Based on results in the Taiwan market, Hanchen Group intends to expand its marketing efforts in all Southeast Asian countries.
Cigarette brands
Other products
Tobacco growing
Hanchen Group has 10,000 hectares of farmland in Cambodia used to grow mainly Virginia tobacco as well as an 80 hectares tobacco growing site in Myanmar. The Myanmar growing area is located in the Muse district, close to the Chinese border. In Myanmar Hanchen Group applies Chinese tobacco varieties and technologies in cooperation with local Muse Cigarette factory.
Organic rice production
Hanchen Group produces rice under natural growing conditions that completely exclude the use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, fungicides, herbicides and all other non-organic products. Both the consumer products and the soil used for production, do not contain any traces of chemical residues. Neither hormones nor genetically manipulated seeds are used in Hanchen Group rice production.
The Hanchen organic rice growing area is located at the banks of the Mekong River. Every year during the rainy season the land is flooded. These floods, when the water retracts, leave large quantities of fertile alluvial soil on the land. The organic matter is a natural fertilizer which provides sufficient plant nutrition for the organic crops.
The alternating wet and dry seasons, together with the annual flooding, to a large extent disrupt the life cycle of many insects and soil diseases. This greatly reduces the need for disease and insect control measures.
Business partners
Include:
Corporate Social Responsibility
Hanchen Group has a Corporate Social Responsibility policy which regulates its own actions. The company has set strict guidelines on the environmental, health and safety and sustainability concerns of its business. Hanchen Group has committed itself to the locations of its production sites and supports the local communities regularly. In all of their processes they are trying to minimize the waste, harm to the environment and CO2-emissions.
Hanchen Group recognizes the health issues related to smoking of tobacco products. In Taiwan Hanchen Group is donating a sum for each sold pack of cigarettes to the government's anti-smoking campaign.