Indomie
Indomie is an instant noodle brand produced by the Indonesian company Indofood. Indomie is among the leading instant noodle manufacturers in the world, with 17 factories. Over 19 billion packs of Indomie are produced annually, and exported to more than 80 countries. Indomie has been produced primarily in Indonesia since its launch in 1972. It has also been produced in Nigeria since 1995, Turkey since 2010, and Serbia since 2016. Since its introduction in the region in the 1980s, Indomie has become increasingly popular in African countries.
Background
History
Indomie's name is a portmanteau from Indo for "Indonesia" and mie, an older spelling of the Indonesian word for "noodles", mi.Instant noodles were introduced into the Indonesian market in 1969. Indofood is one of Indonesia's largest pre-packaged food companies, which was founded in 1982 by Sudono Salim, an Indonesian tycoon who also owned Bogasari Flour Mills.
The Indomie instant noodle brand was first produced in June 1972 by PT Sanmaru Food Manufacturing Co. Ltd. with the Indomie Kuah Rasa Kaldu Ayam flavour with the Indomie Kuah Rasa Kari Ayam flavour being produced later in 1980. In 1982, PT Sanmaru Food launched its first dry variant, Indomie Mi Goreng, which quickly became popular in the Indonesian market.
In 1984, PT Sanmaru Food was acquired by PT Sarimi Asli Jaya, which was owned by Bogasari flour mills, before they merged into PT Indofood Sukses Makmur Tbk in 1994. Indomie accounted for around 70 per cent of the instant noodle market in Indonesia in 2010.
Indomie won multiple awards, including the Lausanne Index Prize, the Indonesia Best Brand Award, the Most Effective Ad Award, the Indonesia Consumer Satisfaction Award, and the Indonesia Best Packaging Award.
Timeline
- 1972: Indomie were first introduced to Market in Indonesia, produced by PT Sanmaru Foods Manufacturing Co. Ltd.
- 1982: Indomie introduces a new Indomie flavor variant "Mi Goreng" based on the Indonesian dish "Mie goreng", and Indomie has been distributed to several countries through exports.
- 1988: Indomie was introduced in Nigeria through exports from Indonesia.
- 1995: Indomie opened its first production factory in Nigeria under Dufil Prima Foods – the first instant noodles manufacturing plant of its kind in Nigeria and the largest in Africa.
- 2005: Indomie broke the Guinness Book of World Records category for "The Largest Packet of Instant Noodles" by creating a packet that was 3.4m x 2.355m x 0.47m, with a net weight of 664.938 kg, which is about 8,000 times the weight of a regular pack of instant noodles. It was made using the same ingredients as a regular pack of instant noodles and was certified fit for human consumption.
- 13 December 2009: Roger Ebert put Indomie on his "Twelve Gifts of Christmas".
- 3 January 2010: Indomie released its new design in Indonesia. This design started being used in export markets in mid-2010s, replacing the 2005–2009 design, with the Philippines and Hong Kong being the last countries to adopt this design in February and June 2022, respectively, replacing the 2001–2004 design.
- 7 October 2010: in Taipei, the Taipei County Public Health Bureau announced that cosmetic preservatives were found in Indomie instant noodle products and ordered all vendors to withdraw the product from the market. On 11 October, Indofood released an official statement: "The Company believes that the recent reports in the Taiwanese media arose concerning instant noodle products manufactured by ICBP that were not intended for the Taiwanese market." The authorities there have since allowed the instant noodle products to re-enter Taiwan market on 6 May 2011.
- 11 January 2016: Australian singer-songwriter Courtney Barnett released a song, "Three packs a day" about Mi goreng on a compilation on her record label Milk!
- 31 October 2024: Indomie appointed South Korean girl group NewJeans as its global brand ambassador for Mi Goreng, as well as local brand ambassador for Korean Ramyeon series in Indonesia.
Products
Indomie noodle soup flavours include variations of Rasa Kaldu Ayam, Rasa Kaldu Udang, Rasa Soto Mie, and Rasa Soto Spesial. There are also Beef and Vegetables noodle soup flavours in select export markets. In January 2025, new flavours Rasa Soto Koya Nagih and Rasa Soto Koya Pedas Dower were made available in Indonesia.
''Mi Goreng''
The Mi Goreng line of instant noodles is based on the Indonesian dish mie goreng. It entered the market in 1983 and is distributed in North America, Europe, Africa, Australasia, and various regions in Asia. They are sold in varying weight packets of around and contain two sachets of flavourings. One containing sweet soy sauce, chilli sauce, and seasoning oil; and the other containing dry seasoning powder and fried shallot flakes. In some regions, Mi Goreng is also available in Jumbo packs, a larger variant with a net weight of.The line is available in Mi Goreng, Mi Goreng Pedas, Mi Goreng Rasa Ayam Panggang, and Mi Goreng Rasa Sate. The first three flavours are also available in cup noodle variants in export markets. There is also Mi Goreng Rasa Cabe Ijo or Mi Goreng Perisa Cili Hijau, Mi Goreng Rasa Iga Penyet, Mi Goreng Rasa Soto, Mi Goreng Rasa Sambal Matah, Mi Goreng Rasa Sambal Rica-Rica, and Mi Goreng Kriuuk Pedas. The latter three are only available in Indonesia. The Jumbo variant is only available in Mi Goreng, Mi Goreng Rasa Ayam Panggang, and Mi Goreng Rendang.
Other variants
Indomie Kuliner Indonesia refers to Indonesian traditional cuisine variants, such as Mie Aceh, Mi Goreng Rasa Ayam Pop, Mi Goreng Rasa Cakalang, Mi Goreng Rasa Rendang, Rasa Coto Makassar, Rasa Empal Gentong, Rasa Mie Celor, Rasa Mie kocok Bandung, Rasa Rawon Pedas Mercon, Rasa Soto Banjar, Rasa Soto Banjar Limau Kuit, Rasa Soto Lamongan, Rasa Soto Medan, and Rasa Soto Padang.Mi Keriting is the premium variant with additional toppings. It is available in Rasa Ayam Panggang, Goreng Spesial, and Salted Egg flavour fried curly noodles. There are also Real Meat fried curly noodles variants with real chicken meat, available in Mushroom Chicken and Pepper Chicken flavours.
The Hype Abis series are variants with unique spicy flavours that were introduced in the mid-2010s, and are only available in Indonesia. Variants include Mi Goreng Rasa Ayam Geprek, Rasa Seblak Hot Jeletot, Mi Goreng Rasa Kebab Rendang, and Mi Nyemek Ala Banglahdes'e Rasa Kari, introduced in June 2025. There was also Mi Goreng Chitato Rasa Sapi Panggang, a limited edition flavour in collaboration with Chitato potato chips brand to celebrate Chitato's 30th anniversary, available from May 2019, and Mieghetti Rasa Bolognese, available from early 2021 until 2022.
The Japanese Ramen series, which was introduced in March 2023, is available in Shoyu flavour soup noodles, Takoyaki flavour fried noodles, and Tori Miso flavour soup noodles. Since December 2023, the Japanese Ramen series is also available in Tori Kara flavour soup noodles.
The Korean Ramyeon series, which was introduced in October 2024, is available in Fiery Chikin flavour fried noodles, K-Rosé flavour fried noodles, and Spicy Ramyeon flavour soup noodles.
The Philippine Indomie Mi Goreng series include fried noodles and pancit canton.
Pop Mie
Pop Mie is an instant cup noodle brand which is a sub-brand of Indomie, first introduced in Indonesia in 1987. The soup variant is available in Rasa Ayam, Rasa Ayam Bawang ''Rasa Baso, Rasa Kari Ayam, and Rasa Soto Ayam. The Pop Mie Goreng variant is available in Mi Goreng Spesial and Mi Goreng Pedas. There is also a spicy variant called Pedes Dower and Pedes Gledek, introduced in 2018 and 2019, respectively, and also a soup variant with dried rice called Pake Nasi, which is only available in Rasa Soto Ayam, introduced in 2020. In December 2022, the new variant Pedas Dower Rasa Pangsit Jontor'' was introduced.Outside Indonesia
Nigeria
In Nigeria, Indomie was introduced in the 1980s and is manufactured by Dufil Prima Foods, a joint venture of Indofood and the Singapore-based Tolaram Group. It is available in chicken, onion chicken, chicken pepper soup, and oriental fried noodles flavours. There is also an Indomie relish variant in chicken delight and seafood delight flavours.Indomie Nigeria hosts a yearly award ceremony aimed at recognising, celebrating, and awarding brave Nigerian children after rigorous search processes.