Lee Biscuits to close Malaysian factory after 92 years of operation — Channel NewsAsia

Lee Biscuits will close its factory in Pontian, Johor state, Malaysia, at the end of October. The company is ceasing operations after 92 years in business, Channel NewsAsia reports.

Group restructuring

According to the Malaysian newspaper New Straits Times, the closure is part of a restructuring of the parent group. It is reportedly exiting snack production to consolidate assets and focus on key areas — rubber and palm oil operations.

Suppliers and customers began receiving notifications about the production shutdown last month. Factory workers will also be laid off. Malaysian Chinese-language publication China Press reported that about 300 employees will remain in their positions until the end of October, mainly to carry out cleaning and other work at the facility.

More current news is available on the UA.News Telegram channel Telegram.

Biscuits stocks sold out

The factory's management told China Press that, after the decision to cease operations, the company held several warehouse stock clearance sales over two weeks and sold all its biscuits. Channel NewsAsia also noted that the factory's official website is no longer operating, while the company's social media pages were unavailable.

Lee Biscuits was founded by entrepreneur and philanthropist Lee Kong Chian. The brand is known for Marie biscuits, salted crackers, sugar-glazed biscuits and lemon sandwich biscuits. The brand originated in Singapore: production was moved to Tampoi in Johor Bahru in 1995 and to Pontian in 2005. In 2023, the group closed its long-standing pineapple canning factory in Skudai as it shifted its focus to oil palm cultivation.