Further growth seen in RFM-Unilever ice cream joint venture

November 1, 2024 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — The joint venture between RFM Corp. and Unilever expects sustained growth as it continues to see huge potential in the country’s ice cream market.

The 25-year joint venture, which serves as the local maker and seller of Selecta, Magnum, Cornetto ice cream brands, has reaffirmed its commitment to the Philippine ice cream market in the coming years.

Unilever RFM Ice Cream Inc. was created in 1999 when RFM’s Selecta Ice Cream business and Unilever joined forces to level up the ice cream experience of local consumers with new brands.

Unilever is a global ice cream giant with over P480 billion in global ice cream sales under the brands Ben & Jerry’s, Magnum, Wall’s and Cornetto.

The partnership has emerged as a leading player in the industry, consistently ranking among Unilever’s top-performing ice cream businesses globally and placing the Philippines within its top 10 markets.

RFM, meanwhile, remains as one of the leading food and beverage companies in the country.

Selecta Ice Cream brand, which started with the Arce family in the late 1940’s, was bought by RFM in 1990.

Under RFM, the Selecta ice cream brand further flourished into a strong national ice cream brand.

RFM CEO Jose Ma. Concepcion III said that the listed firm is eyeing stronger performance from the partnership as it sees immense growth potential of the Philippines as a consumer and ice cream market.

With the significance of the ice cream joint venture with Unilever to RFM’s growth story, Concepcion said that RFM shareholders can expect continued growth through innovations from Unilever’s global ice cream research and development, new brands and updated consumer insights.

The ice cream segment is about one-third of the total revenues of RFM and stands as key anchor of the company’s growth story.