TF to gain full control of Myojo after ties turn sour.

Byline: Pitsinee Jitpleecheep

May 11--Thai President Foods Plc (TF), the manufacturer of Mama instant noodles, will buy out shares in TM Foods from its Japanese and local partners this year for 400 million baht, ending Myojo brand's 20-year history in Thailand.

Since Myojo Foods of Japan was taken over by Steel Partner, a western venture-capital firm, a few years ago, the co-operation between TF and Myojo has changed. "We are not happy that it asked to get the Myojo brand back, even though we have been building it for more than a decade," said Pipat Paniengvate, president of TF, adding that Japanese and western business philosophies were very different. …