MTDC’s Sireh Emas Marketing, Euglena target to sell 100,000 boxes of newly-launched Dr Kengo this year

KUALA LUMPUR, March 17 (Bernama) — The Malaysian Technology Development Corporation (MTDC) a wholly owned company of Khazanah Nasional Bhd has announced the collaboration between its ecosystem company, Sireh Emas Marketing Sdn Bhd (SEM) and Euglena Co Ltd, Japan in producing …
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KUALA LUMPUR, March 17 (Bernama) — The Malaysian Technology Development Corporation (MTDC) a wholly owned company of Khazanah Nasional Bhd has announced the collaboration between its ecosystem company, Sireh Emas Marketing Sdn Bhd (SEM) and Euglena Co Ltd, Japan in producing a halal-certified nutritional product Dr Kengo.

Dr Kengo is a balanced nutrition powder which contains Ishigaki Island euglena, a type of microalgae food, which aims to solve health issues in the Islamic world in the future.

Dr Kengo comes in a refreshing strawberry flavour and is sold at RM50 for a box of seven servings.

MTDC chief executive officer Mohammad Hazani Hassan said that since May 2022, MTDC has introduced several companies to Euglena to collaborate in developing a nutritional product in Malaysia.

“Today we are proud to announce this collaboration with SEM, our halal-fund recipient company.

“MTDC feels that this collaboration is good because not only can we produce products but SEM, our researchers can learn more about microalgae and what kind of products are developed in Japan,” he told reporters after the product launch ceremony here today.

He said Malaysia is among the first countries to come out with a new product with Euglena, Japan.

SEM has been MTDC’s Halal Technology Development Fund (HTDF) recipient since 2019.

Meanwhile, SEM chief executive officer Nik Juzailah Juhari said it expects to sell 100,000 boxes of Dr Kengo this year in Malaysia.

“We believe food should be treated as medicine, hence together, SEM and Euglena will develop, produce and introduce more delicious and nutritious superfood for all to live a healthier life.

“We will further produce the products under the cosmetic and pharmaceutical categories in line with our business expansion,” she said.

Euglena was established in 2005, is involved in research and development (R&D), production and sale of microalgae products for food and cosmetics.

Euglena co-founder and chief technology officer Dr Kengo Suzuki said MTDC has been a great partner to Euglena, and has been advising on the small and medium enterprises (SME) technology development and investment landscape in Malaysia.

“We are very grateful for this opportunity, which started from both Euglena and MTDC, in identifying Malaysian technology companies which are capable of collaborating with Euglena in commercialising its R&D product.

“The collaboration will spur more partnerships between Malaysian technology companies and Japanese entities,” he said.

In May 2021, MTDC and Euglena’s subsidiary; Real Tech Holdings Co Ltd had signed an agreement to formalise MTDC’s participation in the Real Tech Fund Investment Partnership Global 1 (Real Tech Global Fund).

The participation provides MTDC an opportunity to jointly invest with Japanese corporations and industrial groups in potential technology-based companies.

— BERNAMA