Nestlé to invest P4.3B in fifth PHL factory

Food conglomerate Nestlé will invest P4.3 billion in the next two years to build its fifth factory in the Philippines. 

The new facility is expected to create over a hundred jobs.



President Benigno Aquino III led the groundbreaking ceremony at the 27-hectare construction site in Tanauan, Batangas along with company executives led by Nestlé Philippines chairman and CEO John Miller, Swiss Ambassador to the Philippines Ivo Sieber, and local officials led by Batangas Vice Gov. Mark Leviste.

“In the past, I imagine the good people of Nestlé have had to go through some unnecessarily difficult processes when dealing with the government. But we have found that there is still plenty of room to make things more efficient," the President said in his speech during the groundbreaking rites.

“From cutting red tape, to undertaking the prioritization of key industries, to developing and promoting a region-based promotion program, we are maximizing opportunities brought about by international trade and investment agreements," Aquino said.

"The Philippine government is committed to extending all the necessary support to ensure the smooth operations of firms already established in this country, such as Nestlé, toward long-term growth and economic development," he added.

The factory, to be completed by March 2012, will produce Coffee-Mate non-dairy creamer and Bear Brand powdered milk. According to Nestlé, the factory will initially provide 170 new jobs “while creating many other jobs in businesses supplying the facility with raw materials and services."

Nestlé said in a statement it is continuing to invest in its four other factories in Cagayan de Oro, Cabuyao, Lipa, and Pulilan by acquiring new technology and equipment. 

The conglomerate said its local investments in the past five years amounted to nearly P10 billion. Nestlé, which is among the Top 8 largest corporations in the country, said its yearly average growth was P4.6 billion in the last five years, with sales almost totaling P86 billion last year. — VS, GMANews.TV