January 27, 2025

 

Philippines' MPAV seeks to support growth of domestic dairy herd by providing quarantine site for imported cattle

 

 

Metro Pacific Agro Ventures, Inc. (MPAV) in the Philippines said it is looking to participate in the Philippine government's plan to increase the country's dairy herd by providing a potential quarantine site for imported cattle.

 

"The new facility that we are building in Laguna with the Israelis is so high-tech that we are pitching to the government that it becomes the natural quarantine facility for all cows imported from other countries entering the Philippines," said MPAV president and chief executive officer Jovy I. Hernandez during a briefing on January 22.

 

The government aims to increase dairy production to 80 million liters per year by 2028 to increase the share of domestic production to about 5% of dairy demand.

 

"Part of the agenda of the National Dairy Authority (NDA) is to increase the total herd size of the Philippines," Hernandez added.

 

The NDA said that it is looking to import 5,000 heads of cattle by 2028 as part of its goal to increase dairy self-sufficiency by 5% from the current 1.5%.

 

Under the NDA's programme, the calves of the imported dairy herd would be distributed to about 150,000 farmers.

 

"I know that the NDA wants to establish stock farms within the country," Hernandez said. "The intention is for every region to have one, so of course, we in the private sector, if we can help in some of those areas, we will be willing because, again, it's part and parcel of uplifting the industry."

 

The Philippines imports about 99% of its dairy requirements as domestic production cannot meet market demand.

 

MPAV, in partnership with Israel-based LR Group, is set to start the operations of its ₱2 billion (US$34.3 million) integrated dairy facility by April.

 

"We're expecting the new herd to come in April and already start the operations there. In fact, by the fourth quarter of this year, we're expecting full-blast raw milk production already," Hernandez  said.

 

He added that the company expects to be fully sufficient in its dairy needs by 2026, meeting about 25% of the Philippines' demand.

 

"By 2026, we will be self-sufficient in terms of milk supply, for the demand that we are seeing, roughly about 25% of the local dairy production," he said.

 

The company currently has stakes in The Laguna Creamery, Inc., which owns the brands Carmen's Best ice cream and Holly's Milk. Last year, it also acquired 100% ownership of Universal Harvester Dairy Farms, Inc. (UHDFI) for over ₱700 million to expand its dairy business and market.

 

- BusinessWorld