MANILA, May 27 (PNA) — Gokongwei-led food and beverage manufacturer Universal Robina Corp. (URC) is aggressively expanding in the Philippines and overseas especially in Southeast Asian countries to keep pace with the rapidly growing economies.
“I think the first and foremost frontier are the Philippines and Southeast Asia which is a market of 600 million people, and rapidly growing economies,” URC president and chief executive officer Lance Gokongwei told reporters after the company’s annual stockholders’ meeting on Wednesday.
Gokongwei said the company has acquired New Zealand snack giant Griffin’s Foods Ltd. and forged new joint ventures Calbee-URC and Dadone-Universal Robina Beverages as it aims to deliver a premium product portfolio suitable to modern retail.
“We’re quite optimistic in the trends we’re trying to meet. The long term trend is really (towards) healthy (foods), it’s covered by Calbee, Nissin and Danone joint ventures,” he said.
Gokongwei said URC has invested 26 million New Zealand (Php841.3 million) to increase capacities in a new bar line in New Zealand which it hopes to start operating by October.
“In Myanmar, we spent US$ 30 million there primarily (for facilities producing) biscuit wafer and snack… Central Vietnam lines are currently being commissioned,” he added.
Gokongwei said they will start introducing various products in various URC markets by next year. It launches about 40 to 50 new products a year.
URC currently serves Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and China/Hong Kong markets.
The company has earmarked Php2.5 billion in capital expenditures for the first half of fiscal year 2015 ending March.
“We’re clearly in investment stage, so I think we expect to be profitable by three to five years,” he added. (PNA)