Sustainable Modern Farming: Big Dutchman’s Presence in the Asia Pacific Region

Recognised as the world’s market leader in the animal husbandry equipment industry, Big Dutchman is renowned for providing sustainable and modern livestock equipment and infrastructure for medium and large-scale commercial farming. Big Dutchman’s brand is synonymous with superior and long-lasting quality, efficient service and unprecedented knowledge in modern farming.

The name of Big Dutchman reflects the pride of its founders’ Dutch ancestry. Established in 1938 by two Dutch emigrants to Michigan, USA, the history of the Company began with the invention of the revolutionary machine for automatic feeding of poultry stock. The machine was to become the world’s first automatic feeding system and forever changed the farming industry.

With the need for such automated system growing rapidly, the Company set-up an exclusive division to meet its demand. Following this, in the 1950s, a subsidiary Company was established in the Netherlands. The business grew exponentially and by mid-1980s, the densely populated livestock area in Calveslage, a town near Vechta, Germany became the location for the Big Dutchman global headquarters.

Through the drive to achieve sustainable solutions for modern farming, the Company initiated a one-stop solutions concept, whereby its skilled and experienced team can offer practical, economical and environmentally friendly solutions to their customers; from housing equipment, feeding system, house ventilation, climate control system to hi-tech farm management system for livestock farming.

The Company also offers alternative egg production equipment, colony systems, poultry cages, breeder management systems, residue treatment systems, lighting systems and more. Farmworkers can control the house environment and production via state-of-the-art controller – the ViperTouch. It can easily monitor the farm’s performance remotely via the BigFarmNet app; which was created especially for this purpose.

Furthermore, among the global Big Dutchman brand is Agricon, a company supplying prefabricated livestock building solutions; a truly complete approach to farming. The innovative designs of Big Dutchman equipment and building infrastructure help customers to optimise the performance of their farm and produce superior quality food on a commercial level.

Today, the Company is active in over 100 countries and has over 2,000 employees worldwide. In Malaysia, the Big Dutchman Asia is located in the industrial area in Bukit Raja, Klang. It is the regional headquarters for sales and distribution for the Asia Pacific (AP) region; from Japan to India to Australia and New Zealand.

The beginning of Big Dutchman in Asia is very much modest. The Company started in a small, privately-owned home in Kuala Lumpur, then to a shop lot in Petaling Jaya, followed by a larger premise in Klang and to its present location in March 2017. This facility is the largest and most modern centre of Big Dutchman outside Europe. It has over 26,000 square meters of office and warehouse space. The state-of-the-art building is also fitted with solar panels the size of two football fields at the rooftop to supply clean energy and a rainwater harvesting system.

Moreover, strategically and conveniently located near Port Klang, the head office and logistics centre fit well into the environment, leveraging upon the available infrastructure of the area. The red-bricked building with modern facilities and well-equipped training rooms is the regional training centre for employees and customers. It houses a large showroom displaying the latest poultry equipment. The significant investment on the current premises of nearly RM123.34 million (€25 million) indicates Big Dutchman’s firm commitment in this rapidly growing part of the world.

According to Mr Jan Hofstede, President of Big Dutchman Asia, the sales and services headquarters was established in Kuala Lumpur in 1992 for Big Dutchman to penetrate the Asian market. Malaysia was chosen as the hub for the Company’s Asian operations due to the proven track record of the country’s stability and a matured legal system. Its good infrastructure facilities, attractive investment incentives, multilingual workforce and affordable standards of living are a definite asset for all foreign investors. This makes Malaysia the preferred choice in addition to its ideal geographical location in South East Asia given that the Straits of Malacca is known for its international navigation waterway and is an important shipping route connecting the East and the West.

The Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA) played an instrumental role in assisting the Company to set its footprints in Malaysia. During the tumultuous times of Movement Control Order (MCO), MIDA launched its online application system which made it easier to conduct ‘business’ with MIDA; whereby the approval was fast and swift. This includes the facilitation given to expatriates returning to Malaysia amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Today, after over 28 years in Malaysia, Big Dutchman has been reaping the benefits of its investment in Asia, recording two digits growth with increasingly satisfied customers. The Company records annual turnover of over RM986.78 million (€200 million).

The Company has grown from a three-man operations team to more than 700 employees within the region and over 250 staff in Malaysia. Mr Jan Hofstede was one of the pioneer staffs responsible for the success of Big Dutchman in Asia. Today, the Company has successfully opened up offices in Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam, India, Japan, Myanmar and Australia.

Big Dutchman Asia will continue to remain competitive in the market and maintain its position as the market leader in this industry. The Company will further invest in localising majority of its manufacturing processes for efficacy in meeting its customers’ needs. The ultimate aim is for the Company to have effective, timely and tighter control on its supply chain management.

The Company has made a significant impact on livestock management and will continue to do so in many years to come. The world’s population is increasing so will the demand for good quality food, especially in Asia given its growing population and high urbanisation rate. This is where the Company will continue its commitment and dedication to enhance and upgrade farming in the Asia region. Big Dutchman Asia’s plan is to ensure the tradition of excellence continues.

For more information, please contact the Marketing Communications department:

Ms. Katrina Chua

Email: [email protected]

T: +603 334 83 555 DL: +603 334 83 423

Website: www.bigdutchman.asia