Fastfood chain operator Jollibee Foods Corp. said Wednesday it teamed up with US-based commodities giant Cargill Inc. to operate and build a poultry processing plant in Sto. Tomas, Batangas.
Cargill and Jollibee will have 70-percent and 30-percent stakes, respectively, in the joint venture Cargill Joy Poultry Meats Production Inc., which is expected to employ 1,000 people.
Jollibee said in a disclosure to the stock exchange it would invest P244.9 million for a 30-percent stake in CJPMPI, while Cargill would contribute P571.5 million for the majority 70-percent interest.
JFC will also invest P15.2 million for a 30-percent stake in Cargill Joy Poultry Realty Inc., from which CJPMPI will lease the land where the plant will rise.
Cargill will oversee the setting up, management and operations of the facility, which would provide Jollibee with dressed and marinated chicken for various brands.
“We partnered with Cargill to deliver high-quality chicken products through Cargill’s technology and quality standards. This partnership will meaningfully benefit our customers, our operations as well as the overall Philippine food industry, ” Jollibee chief executive Ernesto Tanmantiong said.
Tanmantiong said while Jollibee decided to invest in a chicken processing facility, the company would continue to maintain a strong relationship with key chicken suppliers in the country.
The partnership will create an estimated 1,000 new full time jobs and develop new opportunities in the farming community in Batangas and nearby provinces, as local poultry farmers are contracted to grow chicken to supply the requirements of the processing plant.
Cargill said the company was making additional investments in the Philippines to participate in the robust growth of the consumer sector,
“Cargill can contribute in further enhancing the quality of products of JFC brands for its customers at very competitive costs and raise the assurance of its chicken supply,” CJPMPI managing director Paul Fullbright said.
“As in many other parts of the world where we do business, Cargill can also contribute in improving the system of hygiene, food safety and quality by operating a world class facility and by setting high level of partnership with the poultry growers and farmers. We look forward to a very productive poultry processing venture in the Philippines and with JFC,” Fullbright said.
Jollibee had more than 2,500 restaurants in the Philippines as of end-April.
