San Miguel Purefoods poised for major growth

San Miguel Purefoods Co. Inc. plans to invest as much as P10 billion annually for the next two to three years to expand capacity, particularly in the Visayas and Mindanao where the food and beverage manufacturer plans to put up new plants.

Purefoods president Francisco Alejo III told reporters on the sidelines of the briefing on the company’s issuance of preferred shares that for 2015, the company was very “optimistic” about its prospects, estimating double-digit growth in both net profit and revenues.

In 2014, Alejo said the big challenge for the company was the high base in 2013, during which it booked extraordinary gains from the sale of shares in electric utility Manila Electric Co.

For the next two to three years, Alejo said the company would likely put up 10 new plants, mostly in the Visayas and Mindanao.

The company currently operates 36 feed mills and 35 processing plants in the country.

“We are also expanding our hotdogs and nuggets (meat processing) and also expanding some of our feed mills and poultry processing. So we’re expanding across the different businesses,” Alejo said.

For 2015, Alejo said the company’s optimism was underpinned by the likely increase in domestic purchasing power.

The depreciation of the peso and the sharp decline in oil prices are among the often-cited factors that will boost domestic purchasing power this year.

Moving forward, Purefoods sees more opportunities for expansion. Alejo noted that there were other allied business lines that it had yet to get into, like confectionery and condiments.

“There are many possibilities and we have the brand and the distribution network,” he said.

Purefoods is raising at least P10 billion to as much as P15 billion from the issuance of preferred shares.