The 12th edition of the Global Talks Series features Mr. Arief Fachrudin, Coordinator Asia at Agrinews Group, who was appointed in October 2024 to lead and develop the Group’s business across the region. With extensive knowledge of Asia’s poultry and livestock sectors, he brings a valuable perspective that combines industry insight, technical communication and market development. This edition explores Agrinews Group’s strategic expansion into Asia, beginning with aviNews Asia and local-language platforms in Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam. Mr. Fachrudin shares his insights on the growing potential of South and Southeast Asia, changing consumer preferences, adoption of modern production and processing technologies, and the important role of practical technical information in supporting industry growth. Grounded in regional experience and a strong belief in collaboration, Mr. Fachrudin sees India and Indonesia as future leaders of poultry development in their respective regions. His vision highlights how trusted media platforms, localised knowledge, international partnerships and stronger industry connections can improve productivity, encourage investment and support the sustainable growth of Asia’s animal protein sector.
Spreading the wings of Agrinews Group in Asia – October 2024 marked the beginning of Agrinews Group’s business venture into Asia, as well as a new career journey for Mr. Arief Fachrudin who was appointed by the Group to lead and develop its business in the region.
Having started its business in Spain and subsequently expanded into Latin America and the Middle East, Agrinews Group sees Asia as a market with significant potential and one that is worth investing in. The question was: who would lead the project? After consulting with key clients and professionals in the poultry industry, Agrinews Group contacted Mr. Arief Fachrudin and offered him the opportunity to lead its Asia project by Mr. Luis Carrasco, CEO of Agrinews Group. During discussions with me, Mr. Arief Fachrudin said I found that they have strong expertise and experience in multimedia technology, marketing strategy and eye-catching design.
They also have a pool of technical experts in poultry and livestock based in different countries. So, I believe these are good assets for me to start and develop the project in Asia”.
From a business perspective, Agrinews Group owns a wide range of media platforms in various formats, as well as events in different countries. Therefore, Mr Fachrudin’s agenda is to introduce and develop these media platforms and events step by step, according to market potential and needs.
“Our vision is to be a trusted catalyst for the dissemination and exchange of information for the animal protein industry in Asia. We won’t be able to realize this vision alone, but through collaboration with clients and industry associations,” Mr Arief Fachrudin said.
aviNews as the first brand to develop – In Europe, Latin America and Brazil, aviNews has established itself as a trusted poultry media brand. Most of its content is technical yet practical, as the media aims to support people working in the industry and help them thrive. When it comes to Asia, eggs and chicken meat are very important sources of animal protein.
Their production continues to grow, while consumption remains relatively low compared with the US and Europe. Therefore, there is significant room for growth in both volume and value. With this in mind, Mr Arief Fachrudin and his team decided to develop aviNews Asia in English, as well as aviNews Indonesia, aviNews Thailand and aviNews Vietnam in local languages, to reach more people in the industry with the aim to offer high-quality technical articles covering breeding, hatchery, farming, feeding and processing, among other areas.
Since Asia is a vast region comprising many countries, Mr Fachrudin decided to focus on South Asia and Southeast Asia during the first stage. He observed that these two regions had experienced positive year-on-year growth in the poultry business over the past five years, accompanied by new domestic and foreign investments across both the upstream and downstream sectors. Despite external and internal challenges, poultry businesses in these two Asian regions continue to attract new investments from both existing and new players. We believe that over the next 10 years, the two regions will become major centers of poultry production—not only to feed their huge populations but also to supply export markets, said Mr Fachrudin.
Mr Arief Fachrudin believes that India will lead South Asia and Indonesia will lead Southeast Asia, mainly because of their large domestic markets for eggs and chicken meat and their willingness to embrace new technologies to improve productivity and efficiency.
India: Destined to be big – Mr Fachrudin recalled his first visit to the Poultry India exhibition in 2014. At that time, many players were at an early stage of transitioning from open housing to environmentally controlled housing systems. Only a few exhibitors promoted poultry processing solutions, while pioneers were investing in small-scale processing facilities to learn and “test the waters.”
“Now, I should say that environmentally controlled houses have become a standard. I am hearing about more new poultry processing projects, and they are being developed at large capacities. Demand is growing, while consumer preferences are also changing. Consumers want convenience; therefore, processed and further-processed poultry products are what they are looking for,” he revealed. India is destined to become a major poultry market. The industry is now valued at around USD 30 billion. The country is the world’s fourth-largest producer of chicken, producing around 11 million tons of poultry meat annually, and the world’s second-largest producer of eggs, with annual production of around 149 billion eggs.
“Despite internal challenges that need to be overcome through close collaboration between the private sector and governments, India has significant advantages. The poultry producers are eager to adopt new technologies and pursue vertical integration to manage costs. India will certainly be the leading poultry market in South Asia,” said Mr. Fachrudin.
“For us, India is interesting because industry players are hungry for information that can help them grow and develop. This is where aviNews can play its role. In addition, there are many local feed additive and poultry equipment producers with whom we can collaborate, as they are expanding their market reach internationally.”
Looking ahead, Agrinews Group aims to establish a local team in India. The Group is open to partnerships and even joint ventures.
The animal feed industry in Indonesia is now becoming somewhat like the country’s automotive industry, with a growing number of brands from China entering the market. From a positive perspective, foreign players can help advance the industry, as every market participant is driven to become increasingly competitive.
In July 2026, the governments of Indonesia and India deepened their agricultural cooperation by sharing sustainable farming technologies to strengthen food security. Although this cooperation is currently focused more on grains, government-to-government (G2G) cooperation between the two countries has been established.
While Indonesia has introduced its own Indonesia-rooted company, Japfa Group, into India’s poultry industry, Mr. Fachrudin is curious to know which Indian company will be the first to venture into Indonesia’s poultry industry.
