September 8, 2024 | 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines — Century Pacific Food Inc. (CNPF), the listed food and beverage firm of the Po family, is investing about $40 million to acquire and improve a coconut processing facility in Mindanao.
In a stock exchange filing, CNPF said it is taking over Coco Harvest Inc., a company that owns a coconut processing facility in a six-hectare property in Misamis Occidental.
The facility, built in 2016, can produce higher-value coconut-based products such as coconut water, coconut milk, desiccated coconut and virgin coconut oil.
CNPF said that combined with further investments in facility improvements, the total capital expenditure allotted for acquiring 100 percent interest in Coco Harvest amounts to about $40 million.
The company will use internally generated cash flow from operations to finance the investment.
CNPF expects to generate more than 1,500 quality manufacturing jobs in Mindanao with the capacity expansion, which will create demand for auxiliary services needed by the plant as well as provide market access for the harvests of coconut farmers in the region.
CNPF president and CEO Ted Po said the deal is an accretive acquisition for the company.
“More importantly, it marks a significant milestone for the company. Our coconut business, encompassing domestic and export, has grown substantially these past few years on the back of burgeoning trends in health and wellness,” Po said.
“The additional capacity from Coco Harvest will bolster our capability to serve rising demand, with room for expansion as the business grows,” he said.
Po said CNPF has plans for further investments in expansion as the company anticipates that the business will outgrow the facility’s current capacity.
“We are encouraged by the long-term growth trajectory of our coconut business. From where we started, it has evolved to become globally competitive in the category through the team’s commitment to excellence and innovation. It’s a platform where we can create more value for the company and the local coconut farming industry,” he said.
In 2021, CNPF entered the coconut category as a manufacturer of coconut water for OEM (original equipment manufacturer) export.
The company’s export business has grown organically as it built manufacturing capability in other product formats to serve key Southeast Asian players.
CNPF has, likewise, laun-ched a branded coconut business serving the domestic market.
Last March, CNPF signed an expanded long-term agreement with The Vita Coco Co. Inc., a global leader in the coconut water category, for an increased volume of commitments amounting to approximately 90 million liters over the next five years.
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