Majeed, who left his family’s business Sabinsa before the turn of the year, is the new CEO of BGG Americas. BGG is a vertically integrated Chinese ingredient supplier that has a global footprint. Majeed’s new position, which covers Canada, the United States and Latin America, was announced to the industry this week.
Majeed said BGG is known for astaxanthin, tocotrienols and an apple polyphenol ingredient among its many other offerings. The company supplies more than 100 ingredients in total, he said.
No stranger to prejudice
Coming from a company that has most of its operations located in India, Majeed said he’s no stranger to the prejudices some might harbor within the industry about certain countries and the ingredients that come from them.
The perception within the industry, which is backed to some degree by empirical data, is that many of the substandard and adulterated ingredients and finished goods in the global trade originate in China. But blanket statements are almost always misleading, Majeed said.
“Some people have some preconceived notions. I’ve been down that road before. It’s not like you have problems in China and you don’t have problems in India. You’ve got problems everywhere,” Majeed said.
Majeed said his job will be to tell the BGG quality story to the market to differentiate the company from those Chinese competitors that cut corners.
“Having an opportunity to work with a company that cares about R&D, that cares about IP, that cares about the supply chain . . . just bringing those three virtues into the conversation will hopefully change some mindsets down the road. I know it won’t be an easy road,” he said.