“To get rich is glorious. So is helping poor farmers.” So opens our profile of Thailand’s Dhanin Chearavanont, Forbes Asia’s 2011 Businessman of the Year. Chairman of Charoen Pokphand, Thailand’s largest nonstate conglomerate, Dhanin is also the richest person in that country, with a net worth of USD 7.4 billion.
Dhanin’s global agribusiness started out as a seed shop named Chia Tai when it was founded in 1921 in Bangkok’s Chinatown by his father and uncle, both immigrants from Guangdong Province. In 1946 the company was renamed Charoen Pokphand (“prosperity for consumers” in Thai). Over the next two decades CP expanded from seed into feed, farms and grain trading. The youngest of four brothers, Dhanin had such a flair for business that he succeeded his father as chairman at age 30.
The little seed shop that opened its doors 90 years ago is now the world’s largest animal-feed manufacturer, operating in 17 countries, exporting to some 40 and expecting revenue to reach USD 33 billion this year. “We want to be the kitchen of the world,” says the 72-year-old Dhanin.
