PHILIPPINES – Cargill has officially opened its first animal nutrition premix plant in the Philippines to meet increasing demand from medium and large livestock farms and feed millers in the Philippines and Southeast Asian countries for US$12million.

Cargill opened the plant where 50 local employees will produce animal nutrition premix solutions to customers under the Provimi brand.

“The Philippines and Southeast Asian countries are seeing increased consumer demand for meat products, especially pork and chicken.

This is great news for the growth potential of local livestock farms and feed millers,” said Noel Kim, general manager of Cargill Provimi, Philippines.

“At our premix plant, Cargill can now manufacture the animal nutrition products these producers need to sustainably deliver high quality, safe, affordable meat to consumers.”

Malolos City Mayor Christian Natividad praised Cargill’s presence in the area as a boon for the local community.

“The City of Malolos is appreciative of Cargill’s presence, a big boost to our cities’ economic and employment opportunities.

We hope to reciprocate by providing all the needed assistance and better business ambience to make Cargill’s project a success,” Mayor Natividad said.

Chuck Warta, president, Cargill Premix and Nutrition also said, “Cargill is committed to the Philippines and Southeast Asia.

With the population and income growth driving demand for animal protein in the region, Cargill knows how important it is to invest here, supporting local farmers and creating additional job opportunities as a result of our growth.”

Leading the ribbon cutting ceremony were Dr. Ma. Fe Cabullo, DVM, chief of Animal Feeds and Veterinary Drugs & Biologics – Bureau of Animal Industry, Chuck Warta, president of Cargill Premix and Nutrition; Philippa Purser, group director of Cargill Provimi in Asia, Noel Kim, general manager of Cargill Provimi in the Philippines, Philip Soliven, president of Cargill in the Philippines and Lu Yuan, managing director of Cargill Provimi in Southeast Asia.

The premix plant is one of two important plant openings for Cargill in the Philippines as the company also announced the opening of a poultry processing facility, which is a joint venture with Jollibee in Batangas.

The two plants strengthen the company’s presence in Asia Pacific, where Cargill employs 54,000 employees across 16 countries.