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Friday, March 29, 2024

Coca-Cola opens mega hub

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Coca-Cola Beverages Philippines Inc., the bottling arm of Coca-Cola in the country, opened its Mega Manila Hub in Tondo on June 28.

The Mega Manila Hub, in partnership with Container Bridge Philippines Inc. and Manila North Harbor Point Inc., is a strategic convergence point for the company’s shipping operations, giving it an opportunity to synergize transport movements and generate cost savings to serve more people all over the Philippines. The site is the beverage brand’s first in the country, a new milestone in its 109-year journey with Filipinos. 

“On an annual basis, we ship around 6,000 containers across the country. We source them from Sta. Rosa in the north and then we ship them to Visayas and Mindanao through the Manila Bay. Therefore, we decided that this would be a wonderful time and a wonderful opportunity to launch this Mega Manila Hub for CCBPI,” said CCBPI president and chief executive Gareth McGeown.

CCBPI president and CEO Gareth McGeown and Manila Mayor Isko Moreno lead the opening of Mega Manila Hub in Tondo.

He said this is the first time such a thing happened in the company’s 109-year stay in the Philippines.

The Mega Manila Hub will provide sustainable logistics solutions by reducing carbon footprint and optimizing the overall operational efficiencies that can set an example in the industry.

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Coca-Cola’s Mega Manila Hub is part of CCBPI’s commitment to further invest and expand its operations and contribute to the health of the Philippine economy, despite the economic difficulties and social challenges brought about by the pandemic.  

“For 2021, we have invested around P3 billion so far into the country. And we will continue investing because we believe in the Philippines, we believe in its people; we believe in their spirit,” McGeown said. 

The Mega Manila Hub, manned by 100 employees, is a tangible manifestation of the company’s commitment to investing in the Filipino people. McGeown emphasized that for every direct job generated by Coca-Cola, 7 more are projected to be created downstream in the value chain. 

 “We told ourselves that no matter what, we’ll remain true to our commitments- protect each other, support our customers, support our business, and protect our business,” McGeown said.

Ther hub opened just six months after the inauguration of Coca-Cola’s distribution center in Paco which itself was considered a homecoming by stakeholders—the company’s return to the city after the establishment of its first bottling facility in the Philippines a hundred years ago.  

McGeown highlighted the commitment sworn by Manila Mayor Isko Moreno during the Paco Distribution Center’s inauguration, “that working with Manila would be easy, that we would break through barriers and challenges together. He also said that we would be back in Manila soon.”

He pointed out that the mayor’s promise to cultivate a welcoming atmosphere for entrepreneurs has already been realized by the inauguration of two Coca-Cola facilities in just under a year.

Moreno reaffirmed the city’s pledge to increase job generation and the quality of livelihoods by pushing for and maintaining a business-friendly status for the city and thanked Coca-Cola for responding quickly to the local government’s invitation.

The Philippines was Coca-Cola’s first market in Asia in local bottling operations. Today, the Coca-Cola system in the Philippines has evolved into a total beverage company, offering 17 brands in its beverage portfolio and employing over 10,000 Filipinos in 20 manufacturing facilities and more than 70 distribution centers nationwide.

As part of its long-standing commitment to the country, it continuously supports safe water access programs in over 200 communities, empowering over 200,000 women entrepreneurs through training and peer mentoring, and accelerating packaging collection and recycling under its global World Without Waste initiative.

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