By Leslie D. Venzon
MANILA, June 30 (PNA) — Century Pacific Food Inc. (CNPF), the country’s largest canned food company, is scouting for potential acquisitions in a bid to grow profit by seven to eight percent this year.
“We’ve been on the hunt, looking for acquisitions so we can grow. But (these are) in various stages of discussions; some are very preliminary, some are more than preliminary,” CNPF President and Chief Executive Officer Christopher Po told reporters after the company’s stockholders’ meeting on Tuesday.
Po said the company is open at looking at other categories outside its four main business segments: canned and processed fish, private label tuna export, canned and processed meat, and dairy and mixes.
“If there are categories where there is a fit to capabilities of ours, we will look at those categories,” he said.
“We do have the financial flexibility to be able to take advantage of any cost for acquisitions,” Giovanna Vera, CPFI Corporate Planning and Investor Relations Officer, earlier said.
In 2015, the company is almost doubling its capital expenditures (capex) to Php 820 million. Of the total, Php 450 million will finance the construction of its cold storage facilities, while the balance will serve as regular maintenance capex.
“Because of GSP Plus (Generalized Scheme of Preferences Plus) and our need to be able buy raw materials when prices are favorable, we are investing in cold storage in General Santos as well as dry storage. That should be finished before the end of the year,” added Po.
The European Union has granted GSP+ status to the Philippines that provide zero tariffs on strategic exports, including tuna. (PNA)