Thai Union’s boss said that growing innovation revenue from virtually zero at present to $800 million in the next four and a half years was achievable, as the group could leverage its strong brands in every region to introduce new products developed from its Global Innovation Incubator (Gii).

“What makes us different from others is that we have our own leading brands in all regions. We can leverage our strengths in most countries to bring innovations to the markets,” Thiraphong said during an interview with The Nation last week.

Thanks partly to the mergers and acquisitions (M&As) that the company had pursued during the past several years, it currently owns a portfolio of canned seafood brands that are in the top three of their respective markets, such as Chicken of the Sea in the US, John West in the UK, Petit Navire in France, Mareblu in Italy, and Sealect and Fisho in Thailand.

Thai Union expects to see significant results from its Gii from next year, although the first new product launch from the centre is due for the final quarter of this year.

“The years 2017 to 2018 are going to be critical to see whether it [Gii] delivers positive, solid results,” he said.

Thai Union is committed to its goal of achieving $8 billion in annual revenue by 2020, despite the recent aborted takeover of Bumble Bee Foods in the US, which had in effect shed $1 billion from the target.

The group now needs to grow by at least 15 per cent annually during the next four and a half years to achieve the 2020 sales target, the CEO said.

“Even after failing with Bumble Bee, we remain committed [to the $8-billion target] because we believe we still have upside potential. It’s not easy, but having an easy target is not our job,” he added.

To partly offset the revenue shortfall from the aborted Bumble Bee deal, Thiraphong explained that Thai Union had come up with three new initiatives that added to its original organic-growth plan plus innovation and M&A strategies, namely, the global food service channel; emerging markets; and marine ingredients business.

Moreover, the $8-billion top-line growth target is only part of Thai Union’s key financial goals for 2020, which also include a gross profit margin of more than 20 per cent and a net margin of 6 per cent or more, he said.

Gross margin is currently about 16-17 per cent, while net margin is 4.5 per cent.

“It’s not only about the top line. It’s also about margin improvement,” he said, adding that innovations will play a critical role in the group’s shift in direction toward high-value businesses. Despite heavy international attacks on the Thai fishing industry with regard to sustainability and labour issues over the last 12-18 months, Thai Union continued to show strong financial results last year and in the first quarter of 2016, and keeps winning a vote of confidence from investors, customers and suppliers, he said.

The group recently won five out of six awards – Best CEO, Best at Investor Relations, Best Managed Company, Most Committed to Corporate Governance, and Best Corporate Social Responsibility – that FinanceAsia magazine gave to large Thai companies in its 2016 poll. “These awards were rated by investors, so that is why we are quite pleased with all these awards, which demonstrate the confidence and trust that investors have in us. If you [just] looked at the news, we should not have been awarded. We have been in the wrong industry in the last 18 months,” the chief executive said.

“I will try to work with Greenpeace. It’s a challenge, but we are always open to all suggestions because we want to do the right things,” he added.