A dream comes true for Chow family with opening of Lae biscuit factory

Caption: Lady Colette Chow and Sir Henry Chow with son Ian, Lae Biscuit Company managing director, with a Chinese guardian lion at the new factory in Lae.-Picture by GABRIEL LAHOC

 

Hundreds of invited guests from Papua New Guinea and overseas are expected to converge on Kamkumung in Lae tomorrow (Saturday) for the opening of the new K65 million Lae Biscuit Company factory in Lae by Governor General Sir Paulias Matane.

The guest list reads like a who’s who of PNG business, government and politics who will be there to witness the opening of PNG’s largest single factory and the biggest stand-alone biscuit-making factory in the southern hemisphere.

Excitement is already building up among the Lae business community and people as they see this as an opportunity to shrug off some of the much-maligned ‘pothole city’ tag and to regain some of its lost glory.

It will be a special day for company founder and chairman, Sir Henry Chow, aged 76, a member of Chinese family that has been in the country for 115 years – spanning six generations - since its grandfather arrived at Kokopo as a coolie labourer under the German administration in 1895.

“The family has done very well over the 115 years from our coolie grandfather labourer to come to this stage,” an emotional Sir Henry told reporters in his magnificent new boardroom.

“It has not been easy.

“The family has been through two world wars.

“With a coolie labourer background, we have been discriminated against by the Germans and then the Australians.

“Our parents have sacrificed and educated all their children in Australia, who have returned to PNG to run little boats, little trade stores and little plantations.”

Sir Henry, a trained boat builder, bought off a small biscuit-making company called Lae Biscuit Company at Voco Point in Lae in 1974.

“It was a very small factory, making a quarter tonne of biscuits a day,” he recalled.

“In 36 years, Lae Biscuit has grown and expanded 150 tonnes.”

Asked what his secret was, Sir Henry revealed: “Determination and will because I want to make good.

“My grandparents on both sides instilled in me that they were discriminated against and we have to work hard to become a success.

“That has been ringing in my head all these years.”

Tomorrow, a dream comes true for Sir Henry and the Chow family, as they shrug off a stigma that has haunted them since their grandfather first set foot on PNG shores all those years ago.

Lae’s new biscuit factory to open on Saturday

Captions: 1. The popular Snax biscuits being produced at the new factory yesterday.-Pictures by GABRIEL LAHOC. 2: Sir Henry Chow…a dream come true with the opening of the new factory

 

The magnificent new Lae Biscuit Company factory at Kamkumung in Lae, the largest single factory in Papua New Guinea, will be officially opened by Governor General Sir Paulias Matane on Saturday.

This brand-new biscuit-manufacturing facility is a modern and functional one and is the biggest stand-alone biscuit-making factory in the Southern Hemisphere, comparable in standard with any similar factory in Australia.

It will provide employment to some 450 people and with some of the best-working conditions and remuneration packages in PNG.

The buildings and whole facility were built by Lae Builders and Contractors and consists of a main factory building which is 204 metres long, administration building, staff facility building, workshop building, emergency generating set building and guard house building.

The two biscuit-making lines are installed in the main factory building and the administration building will accommodate administration, planning, accounting and marketing.

The staff facility building has a fully-equipped kitchen and a large dining room which can prepare and provide meals and caters for 200 persons at one seating.

Lae Biscuit Company will provide meals to all staff at no cost to them.

Ablution and laundry facilities are up to international standards for a food-manufacturing facility.

 Lae Biscuit Company chairman Sir Henry Chow told reporters yesterday that it had cost the company K65 million to build and operate the factory.

 "This is the best food-making facility in PNG," he said.

 "Nothing can compare with it."

 Sir Henry said he came up with the idea of a new factory after Lae Biscuit Company found out that demand for the its popular Snax biscuits was outstripping supply.

 "This new factory, when fully functional, will produce 100 tonnes of biscuits a day," he said.

 "We will be able to fully meet our (PNG) needs for the next five years."

Prime Minister opens new UNRE buildings

Captions: 1. Sir Michael with Tropicana owner Sandra Lau at the Vision 2050 Library. 2. Plaque at the new Vision 2050 Library. 3: Vision 2050 Library plaque. 4: Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare opens the UNRE’s new administration building which is named after him. 5: Plaque at UNRE’s new administration building

 

Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare opened two new buildings at the University of Natural Resources and Environment in Vudal, East New Britain province, last Friday.

 Sir Michael opened the UNRE’s new Vision 2050 Library which was built at a cost of about K500, 000 and its new administration building which is named after him and built at a cost of about K1.5million.

 He opened the buildings immediately after officiating at the UNRE graduation.

 The library extension and upgrading was completed with a K100, 000 donation from leading Kokopo business house, Tropicana, through its owners John and Sandra Lau, while UNRE chipped in with K400, 000.

 Work started on the new library in the middle of 2009 and was completed at the end of the year.

 The problem of a cramped library from the old days of UNRE as Vudal Agricultural College is now a thing of the past with students now having more space for study in air-conditioned and carpeted furnishings.

 There are more study tables and space for library staff has also been improved.

 The administration building, named after Sir Michael, was completed in 2008 with staff moving in last year.

 It houses the offices of Vice Chancellor, public relations, registrar, human resources, planning and internal auditor.

UNRE addresses seven pillars of Vision 2050

Captions: Vice Chancellor Prof Philip Siaguru addresses the UNRE graduation in Vudal last Friday

 

The University of Natural Resources and Environment in Vudal, east New Britain province, is addressing all seven pillars of the Government’s Vision 2050, according to Vice Chancellor Prof Philip Siaguru.

This is what places the UNRE in good stead for the future, he said at the university’s graduation last Friday.

Prof Siaguru said despite all the hype about liquefied natural gas and other non-renewable resources, these would all be gone one day, and the cash generated from these should be invested in Papua New Guinea’s vast and rich renewable resources sector.

“Hence, in this University of Natural Resources and Environment, we have made it our business to build this task into our vision and mission, so that al arms of this university, together with our likeminded partners such as the National Fisheries Authority, must stay focused on the primary task of alleviating poverty, reducing displaced cultures, and most importantly through agricultural and fishing skills, keep providing food security to the critical masses,” he said.

“The very basic reason youths and those displaced in the community steal and kill is because they are hungry, they are deprived of a very-basic but significant need.

“The university’s vision, which is ‘sustaining the livelihood of critical masses through education’, was carefully woven into the university’s task because this institution believes in empowering communities to help themselves.

“We believe our professionally-trained graduates will drive this vision and multiply it on for its worth, beyond today, beyond what the two Sirs, and former and one current Prime Minister (Sir Michael Somare and Sir Rabbie Namaliu) seated here have started.

“We must begin by empowering the communities to be self-reliant and bolster food security in households and fishing lots.

“We must rearrange their attitude through education by providing that confidence in farmers so that they can lift from the mentality of waiting for government services and assistance, and propel themselves towards being self-reliant.”

Prof Siaguru said the focus should be shifted from training for jobs to that of job creation.

Agriculture a noble profession

Captions: 1. Graduands marching proudly to the graduation area to receive their degrees, diplomas and certificates at the 13^th UNRE graduation last Friday.2.  Dux of the 2009 graduation degree class at UNRE, Michelle Jambui, receives her degree from Chancellor Sir Rabbie Namaliu. Apart from being the top overall student in her class, which earned her the coveted National Agriculture Research Institute Kana Aburu Medal, she was the top graduating student in industry project, animal science, crop science and rural engineering. As dux of the graduating class, Ms Jambui presented the respondent speech on behalf of her fellow graduands.

 

 

Graduating students of the University of Natural Resources and Environment in Vudal, East New Britain province, have been told to be proud of agriculture as a career.

 Student representative Michelle Jambui, also the dux of the degree class, said agriculture was often disparaged as a “low standard profession”.

 “I stand here today on behalf of all the graduating students as a proud product of this university,” she said.

 “In my study days, I have often heard people say that agriculture is a profession for those that cannot become lawyers, doctors and accountants.

 “Many perceive agriculture, and for that matter natural resource profession, as a low-standard profession for those with low academic aptitude.

 “I stand here today with my head held high for all our graduates and say this is not true.

 “Natural resources, its wise harvesting and sustainability provide the much-needed wealth of this nation.”

 Ms Jambui gave a vote of thanks to the New Zealand government for providing scholarships to all female agriculture graduates.

 She appealed to her fellow graduates to perform to the best of their abilities.

 “As we venture into our various professional fields, we must always be honest to ourselves and to our employers and perform our duties diligently with our utmost best,” Ms Jambui said.

 “As a start, we have to change our prespective and mindset from student hood to an independent and self-reliant person, willing to contribute to the nation, regardless of what our individual expectations are as a university student.

 “Regardless of how difficult our studies were, we overcame such obstacles with determination and perseverance.

 “Success in life means mastership and mastership means utilising every human force and power of the being, as well as the outer force, to reach your desired goal.”

Local birds

From PAUL OATES

'Cast your bread upon the waters and it will come back to you,' goes an old saying.

We cast our stale bread on the back lawn and all we got was some local birds.

Pictures of Prime Minister arriving at Toku Airport, Kokopo, on the new Falcon jet

Above are pictures of Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare arriving at Tokua Airport, Kokopo, on the new Falcon jet for the 13th graduation ceremony of the University of Natural Resources and Environment last Friday.