Cambodia-based integrated food-distribution company Hun Ty plans to open its own retail fresh-food market next month and will increase its cold storage and food-distribution business by opening two additional locations in the Kingdom, a company executive said yesterday.

Kain Poly, marketing manager for Hun Ty, said the company will launch its new fresh-food market chain, Fresh Mart, in Phnom Penh next month. The flagship store will act as a retail outlet for the company’s wholesale partners.

He added that the new venture would benefit from the firm’s current facilities, which will help facilitate food distribution and reduce costs.

“I am confident the company’s investment will be a success as we are already the largest cold storage operator and food distributor in Cambodia, which will ensure the quality and freshness of the products we sell at the mart,” he said. “The prices of the products from the Fresh Mart will be cheaper than other stores by at least 30 to 50 percent.”

Hun Ty currently operates a $10 million cold storage facility in Phnom Penh that opened in April. The facility is capable of holding 10,000 tonnes of goods, while the company is in the process of building a 3,200- square-metre food-processing facility on adjacent land, according to Poly.

He said the firm offers 90 stalls for leasing next to the facility for wholesalers to sell their products, 40 of which are currently occupied.

“The owner of the company will now expand our food wholesale and cold storage business the provinces of Preah Sihanouk and Siem Reap,” Poly said. “Our rental partners will receive a lot of facilities all in one place for selling goods, storing products in the cold storage as well as selling directly in our Fresh Mart, which will include an online purchasing and delivery service.”

Lim Heng, vice president of the Cambodian Chamber of Commerce, said cold storage facilities were a key element to promoting the sale of the country’s agricultural products by significantly increasing their shelf life.

“Investing in cold storage is the good opportunity and will promote our agricultural products as traders will no longer need to be concerned about the spoilage of their products,” he said.