Asia accounts for over 64% of global egg production, with China being the world’s largest egg producer. Little wonder, perhaps, that a ranking of Asia’s leading egg producing companies is dominated by Chinese concerns, but it is not a Chinese company that leads our ranking of Asia’s 10 largest egg producers.
The top slot goes to Thailand’s CP Group, but it may not hold that position for long. Ranking number two in our table is China’s Beijing Deqingyuan Agricultural Technology Company Co. Ltd. The company may have 1.4 million fewer hens than CP Group, but it has announced plans to bring 60 million hens into production.
Will there be demand for all of these extra eggs when per capita consumption in China is already high for the region and other companies are also expanding?
A number of the companies in the ranking are not only active in egg production but also in egg processing and in producing foods that contain eggs. As incomes rise across Asia, demand for more processed food will rise, likely absorbing some of this extra production.
It is also worth remembering that the high consumption of eggs in China, along with that in a number of other countries, tends to skew a calculation of the region’s per capita egg consumption. Once these countries are removed from the calculation, Asia’s egg consumption per head falls below the world average, suggesting that consumption in the region can rise and with improving economies it probably will.
1 CP Group
Thailand’s CP Group is the owner of 22 million layers. The Bangkok-based conglomerate operates in areas ranging from agriculture to banking services to industry and is present in 21 countries. The company owns 100% of its egg production chain from feed milling and breeding, though to farming and egg processing.
Last year, CP Group announced that it would expand its cage-free egg capacity to 20 million eggs and that it would start to export to Hong Kong.
2 Beijing Deqingyuan Agricultural Technology Company Co. Ltd.
China’s largest egg producer has 20.6 million birds at lay. Headquartered in Beijing, the company not only produces and processes eggs but also breeds poultry. It claims to be the only company in China with grandparent and parent stock and commercial layers.
Deqingyuan Agricultural Technology Company Co. Ltd. was founded as recently as 2000 and currently produces 7.5 billion eggs each year. It has ambitious expansion plans, aiming to operate 30 egg farms across 14 provinces in China. These will house 60 million hens producing 14 billion eggs annually.
3 Ise Inc.
Japan’s Ise Inc. has 20 laying hens. In addition to operating in its home country, Ise Inc. also has interests in China and the U.S. The company owns two further processing plants and two liquid egg facilities in Japan, while in the U.S., it owns 6 million layers and has its own feed facilities. Founded in 1910, the company entered the Chinese market, via a joint venture, in 2007. It has started expansion plans for its Chinese operations, which are thought to currently comprise 2.4 million birds.
4 Sichuan Sundaily Farm Ecological Food Co.
Sundaily is the fourth largest egg producer in Asia with a laying flock comprising 13 million birds. In addition to eggs, Sundaily produces other food products and sells into 30 large and medium cities in China. It is a major supplier to international food companies, such as KFC and McDonald's. It also has its own research facilities.
5 Kazi Farms Group
Following close behind Sichuan Sundaily, the Kazi Farms Group, in Bangladesh, owns 12.7 million laying hens. The company was established in 1996 as a hatchery for imported eggs and the following year started its own parent farms. In 2004 production at grandparent farms started. The company is the largest producer of commercial table eggs in Bangladesh, produces broiler parent stock and chicks, and has feed and fertilizer operations.
6 Shanxi Jinlong Breeding Co. Ltd.
The third Chinese company to appear in the top 10 of Asian egg producers, Shanxi Jinlong Breeding Co. Ltd., houses 12 million layers. The company comprises eight divisions and has over 200 employees.
7 Guangdong Yihao Foodstuff Co.
This Chinese producer is the owner of 8 million birds. In addition to producing eggs, the company is also involved in pork, chicken and ducks and sells into over 30 cities. It has won a number of animal welfare awards.
7 Houde Foods Co. Ltd.
Fellow Chinese concern Houde Foods also owns 8 million birds. The company was established in 2007, and, in addition to egg production, its operations include grain storage, layer breeding, energy production, egg processing and food production. It has four layer farms with an annual capacity to produce 150,000 tons of eggs.
9 Hanwei Group
Hanwei Group, also located in China, farms 7.2 million layers. It sells its eggs under the brand name Gegeda and is one of the largest egg products manufacturers in Asia.
10 Leong Hup International Bhd.
Leong Hup International Bhd, of Malaysia, rounds up the top 10 of Asia’s largest egg producing companies with 6.4 million birds. Since its foundation in the late 1960s, as a vegetable wholesale and broiler business, Leong Hup has grown to become one of Southeast Asia’s leading fully integrated poultry operators and produces over 1.8 billion eggs annually. Its operations now spread across Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Singapore and the Philippines. It operates feed mills, sells day old chicks, produces and sells broiler meat and eggs, processes food, and operates quick service restaurants.
Learn more about the world’s leading egg and broiler producers
