The gum and confectionery global innovation center for Mars Wrigley is under construction in the Guangzhou Development District in South China. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Construction started on Monday for the $10 million Mars Wrigley gum and confectionery global innovation center in the Guangzhou Development District (GDD) in South China.

"This innovation center is expected to focus on the gum and confectionery category's innovation and R&D, working with the Yonghe factory (in GDD) to develop a global comprehensive base of Mars Wrigley for innovation and R&D, advanced manufacturing, talent development and training," said Justin Comes, vice-president, R&D, Mars Wrigley China .

"The innovation center will bring out more localized and innovative products in China, and aims to introduce these innovations to Mars globally," he said.

With a floor area of 3,800 square meters, the building is expected to be completed by the end of this year, indicating all product categories of Mars Wrigley will have their R&D and manufacturing facilities in China.

Mars launched its China strategy of "from being present to being relevant" in 2018, focusing on product innovation and capability upgrading. Supply chain upgrade and optimization have been a core part of the transformation of Mars Wrigley, Comes said.