MikeLigalig.com

by PNA - The Board of Investments (BOI) recently approved the application of Thai-owned Charoen Pokphand Foods Philippines Corporation (CPFPC) to raise hog parent stocks and slaughter hogs in the country.

Trade and Industry Undersecretary and BOI Managing Head Adrian S. Cristobal Jr. said, “We see a steady increase of investments from foreign investors in strategic sectors like agribusiness. This trend helps balance our investment portfolio, increase opportunities in rural areas, and strengthen food security.”

Agriculture policy expert Dr. Roland Dy, in a recent dialogue with DTI, remarked that growth in the country’s agriculture sector will likely be driven by the rising income and wealth in Asian countries, supply chain transformations in logistics and supply chain management, technology advancements, and cross-border investments.

“Agriculture/agribusiness is among the industries listed in the Investment Priorities Plan and has been identified by the DTI as one of the sectors for industry development. With a large constituency composed of small shareholders and farmers, investments in this area will help increase our farmers’ incomes and help reduce poverty,” added Cristobal.

The P1.352-billion investment project of CP Foods involves three swine farms: one in Floridablanca, Pampanga for the production of parent stocks, and two in Concepcion, Tarlac for the production of breeder stocks and swine.

The company’s parent stock capacity will be 25,453 heads and 3,647 MT slaughter hogs once the project starts its commercial operations in 2013.

The investment is projected to create an average net value added of 75 percent to the economy. The company’s primary raw materials used in manufacturing livestock feeds like corn, soybean, fish meal, and other feed ingredients will be sourced from both local and foreign suppliers.

CPFPC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Thailand’s CP foods PCL which already has existing business operations in the Philippines, including production and marketing of prawn and fish fries.

Thailand led the country’s foreign investors for the first quarter with total investments amounting to P2.264 billion, followed by Japan, China, Italy, and the United States, data from the BOI showed.

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