Cargill builds 5th PH animal feeds factory

AMERICAN agribusiness giant Cargill is building a new premix animal feed manufacturing facility in Malolos, Bulacan, scaling up its investment in the Philippines which is deemed as a key growth market for its Asian animal nutrition business.

Cargill broke ground for the new facility on Tuesday at First Bulacan Industrial Park in Malolos, Bulacan. This will be Cargill’s fifth animal nutrition facility in the Philippines and its first dedicated to manufacturing Provimi premix solutions, the American firm said in a press statement.

The facility – designed to deliver 20,000 metric tons of premix solutions per year – is slated for completion by the third quarter of 2017. It seeks to serve primarily medium to large livestock farms and feed millers. The facility is expected to employ close to 50 people from the local community.

“The livestock farming industry is evolving as farms consolidate, become larger and require more sophisticated nutritional solutions. The new facility will significantly increase the number of innovative offerings that will improve the cost and performance of raising livestock or producing quality complete feeds. It will also provide a broader portfolio of premix solutions to help farmers who need greater flexibility in their animal nutrition requirements or those who are considering the transition from utilizing compound feeds to developing their own feed formulations,” said Noel Kim, director at Cargill Philippines’ Premix and Nutrition.

The firm said the facility would be built “with the highest and strictest standards in both employee safety, which Cargill prioritizes in its operations, as well as product quality and consistency.”

Malolos Mayor Christian Natividad, who graced the ground-breaking, welcomed the addition of the facility. “We are happy to be the beneficiary of this investment and we look forward to a very good partnership with Cargill,” he said.

The Philippines is seen as a key growth market for Cargill’s animal nutrition business in Asia as it seeks to become one of the regional leaders in providing world-class applied nutrition solutions.

In addition to this new facility, Cargill is also investing in a new poultry processing facility in Batangas via a joint venture with homegrown fast-food giant Jollibee Foods Corp. That facility will employ 1,000 employees and will be the largest of its kind in the Philippines.

The JFC group is one of the largest buyers of chicken in the Philippines. Apart from flagship brand Jollibee which sells the popular fried chicken “chickenjoy,” its brands Mang Inasal, Chowking, Greenwich and Burger King franchise also sell a significant volume of chicken products.

“The opening of both facilities reinforces Cargill’s commitment to growing in Asia and strengthens its position as the global leader in nourishing the world in a safe, responsible and sustainable way,” the American firm said.