Our global presence
Farmers & Origination
Sourcing directly and indirectly from roughly 2.75m farmers
Providing sustainability support to roughly 483,000+ farmers
Improving traceability and transparency in your supply chain
Manufacturing & Processing
~110+ owned processing plants around the world
Managing how and where raw materials are processed
Offering you flexibility, choice and control
Innovation Centers
15 innovation centers near major consumption markets
Committed to finding solutions for product innovation
Turn your ideas into reality and delight consumers
ofi Offices
There's always an ofi team nearby
Your first point of contact when working with us
Experts in our products and closely connected to origins
Remaining invested in origins - building capacity in destination markets
Origination
It all starts on the farm. You need quality, traceability and reliable supply. Farmers need support to make their businesses sustainable. We can deliver it all.
Consumers want to know who grew their coffee and where their cocoa came from. We work closely with thousands of farmers and we have our own farms too, helping you to improve provenance.
Worldwide, we run sustainability programs designed to help farmers improve yield and quality and increase their incomes. Overall, we estimate we give sustainability support to more than 420,000 farmers and their communities.
As well as buying crops, we’re farmers ourselves. In Australia and the USA, we grow almonds. In Brazil and Vietnam, we have our own black pepper estates. And in Indonesia, we’re establishing a 2,000 hectare cocoa farm.
Manufacturing
Choice, control, flexibility. With manufacturing and processing facilities around the world, we offer you all three. Get the most out of cocoa, coffee, dairy, nuts, and spices with ofi.
How do you like your nuts? We do whole, in pieces, as butter, paste, powders, oils and flavored. This is just one example of the choice and control you get when you work with ofi. We invest in the latest technology and always maintain the highest food safety and quality standards.
To improve efficiency and transparency, our facilities are strategically located in the country of origin or close to major consumption markets. For example, our soluble coffee processing facilities are based in Spain and Vietnam, with a third being built in Brazil. Our cocoa processing operations are based across Asia, Europe, Latin America and the USA. Read more about our nuts, spices and dairy operations too.
Innovation Centers
Delight consumers, grow your business, create real change for people and planet. Innovation isn’t just exciting; it’s baked into the ofi way of working.
On any given day, our teams of food scientists and chefs could be working with one of our customers on the launch of a new bakery product using nut-based flours and the darkest cocoa powder available; exploring unusual spice flavors for a brand extension in chocolate confectionery; helping a customer produce a plant-based cheese; or creating an easily reconstituted, affordable fat filled milk powder for developing markets.
Our 14 innovation centres are hives of creativity, totally in tune with local tastes and market needs. This is where we turn ideas into reality so you can keep meeting consumer demand and growing your business. Work with us to stay on top of trends and find new and better ways of doing things.
With a keen eye for customer quality and regulatory requirements, our innovation centres focus on:
- Co-creating brand extensions and reformulating existing customer products
- Developing exciting new products for the bakery, beverages, confectionery, plant-based, savory, snacks and bars categories
- Creating consumer feel-good products in line with health and dietary needs
- Developing the right sensory (taste, texture and color) experience in line with customer brands
- Developing clean label recipes, replacing additives and chemicals with natural ingredients
- Developing natural and plant-based alternatives to fit into existing customer brand families
Marketing & Sales
Do you need natural, nutritious, delicious and traceable ingredients? Then speak to our customer teams. Wherever you’re based, there’s an office nearby.
What would you like to know about our products and ingredients? Ask away, our customer teams have detailed knowledge of our products and how they will fit into your applications. They’re also the bridge connecting you to the origin of your ingredients.
Discuss ingredient quality, innovation, even recipe development. Learn about local food and beverage trends, and get the latest supply-and-demand market insights. Above all, because we have offices in many time zones around the world, get this support and advice when you need it.
Read ofi news
Cultivating the next generation of process engineers
For over a decade, ofi has developed the next generation of process engineers and technical excellence in the Netherlands in partnership with Food & Process Tech Campus of Regio College in Zaandam. Tijmen Hoeve, ofi's Training Coordinator, shares three reasons why we invest in internships and how they add value to our operations and the wider society:
Developing in-demand skills
It all started with a skills gap in the industry. In the Netherlands, we have a shortage of technical skilled occupations such as engineers, ICT, and technicians, and the Covid pandemic hasn't helped the situation either. European Commission reported that in 2022, there is still a shortage of engineers. And to highlight the labor issues on the continent, it announced 2023 as the European Year of Skills.
This challenge also requires long-term support and investment to make a difference. The internship ofi offers, which has been running since 2012, is connected to the Food & Process Tech Campus program. The four-year course, aimed at 17-21year olds, gives students a mix of theory and practical experiences in a real-life setting. Over four years, students can apply their technical understanding in our facilities in Koog aan de Zaan or Wormer.
Investing in the future
Equipping students with the right skills to enter the workforce is a way to help future-proof the industry. Since 2012, ofi has given 5,000 euros annually to the college, which has helped to fund its practical room and the necessary safety equipment and contributed towards the teacher's salary. In some cases, we've even employed some students who have come through the program. It's a great way to develop talent that deeply understands your business.
Giving back to the community
I started my career in the food industry, working in various roles in food engineering. After 12 years of food tech, I channeled my passion into training the next generation of process engineers. Teaching is in my blood. My grandfather was a headmaster, and my father was a teacher, as is my brother, so I felt like a natural next step in my career.
When I moved into education, I helped develop the curriculum for the Food & Process Tech Campus course and have previously worked at the college itself, so I have a strong understanding of what the students need to be successful in the course and to transition into the industry. I'm proud we support a local college, within walking distance of our facility in Koog aan de Zaan. Hear from Zlatan what it's like to be an intern at ofi.
ofi expands manufacturing capacity with opening of new dairy facility in New Zealand
ofi (olam food ingredients), a global leader in naturally good food and beverage ingredients, is celebrating the official opening of the first phase of its new, state-of-the-art dairy processing plant located in the dairy heartland of New Zealand – the Waikato region in the north island of the country. The facility will produce dairy ingredients like whole milk powder to meet growing demand, targeting key customer applications in dessert, bakery, beverage, and confectionery categories.
Sandeep Jain, Managing Director and CEO, Dairy, at ofi commented: “As we continue to expand our dairy manufacturing capabilities and innovation infrastructure, the new Tokoroa plant will become part of a global network that spans major milk consumption markets, such as South-East Asia, China, the Middle East, and Africa. The new plant also complements a suite of enhancements made to ofi’s dairy production facility and Ingredient Excellence Centre (IEC) in Johor, Malaysia back in September – which combined with our Customer Solutions Center based in Singapore, enables us to co-create bespoke food and beverage solutions for our customers. Our dairy business is well positioned to serve increased demand from our global customer base and co-create innovative applications at scale – driving additional focus on the value-added capabilities within our portfolio.”
The Tokoroa dairy ingredients forms part of ofi's much wider natural ingredients portfolio which includes cocoa, coffee, nuts and spices, ideal combinations with dairy for customized products such as yogurts, protein bars and ready-to-drink tea, coffee and cocoa beverages. The new facility also complements ofi’s existing global footprint, driving stronger partnerships with its customers and strengthening its co-creation capabilities across the region.
The next stage of investment will see further capability added to the facility to develop high value dairy ingredients, expanding the range of ofi’s offering. It will also enable ofi to look at ways to grow the value of its milk, generating better returns for its farmer partners while delivering on its ambition to produce ingredients in a way that is socially responsible and environmentally sustainable.
Back to school: 3 ways to help children in cocoa communities access education
As autumn started, children worldwide returned to school, and those in cocoa communities were no exception. As part of our Cocoa Compass sustainability ambition, we're working with our customers and partners to ensure that all children of cocoa farmers in our supply chain can get an education by 2030. Not only is this a human right, but it's also a key driver for tackling child labor.
Do you want to make it real?
Speak to ofi about sourcing high-quality food ingredients, innovating to delight consumers, and improving your sustainability credentials.
