January 31, 2025

 

Ice cream brand in Philippines markets local milk to support country's supply

 

 

A Filipino ice cream brand has expanded its product line to include locally-sourced fresh milk to increase livelihood opportunities for dairy farmers and boost supply in the Philippines by the end of 2025.

 

In his message during a press conference to launch the Carmen's Best fresh milk in Makati City on January 22, Jovy Hernandez, president and chief executive officer of Metro Pacific Agro Ventures (MPAV), the wholly owned agriculture unit of Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC), said with the new product line, MPAV aims to uplift the country's dairy industry by working alongside various stakeholders such as farmers, the academe, and the local and national government.

 

MPIC invested in the Carmen's Best Group to develop and expand its dairy farm and dairy products manufacturing in 2022.

 

"Real fresh milk keeps all the most important things... Of any developed country, agriculture is always there," Hernandez said. "The North Star of [MPAV] is really get into agricultural sub-sectors, apply the latest technologies, and the most modern farming practices."

 

He believes that by having better product quality, increasing yield, and decreasing cost, the Philippines may become an agricultural powerhouse.

 

Hernandez noted that MPAV also provides technical expertise in terms of herd management to dairy farmers.

 

"It is also very important for us to mention that we're working with the government, there are a lot of policies that we can do moving forward to be able to better the industry," he added. "We're also working with the academe on what is the best feed formulation for our cows so that they can maximise yield."

 

Meanwhile, Toby Gatchalian, MPAV's chief commercial officer, noted that the company has supported 39 dairy and corn farmer families to help augment their supply.

 

According to Gatchalian, Filipinos lack access to local fresh milk products as 99% of dairy products are imported, and 70% is in powdered form.

 

He shared that only 1% of the country's dairy requirements is sourced locally, making the brand a catalyst of change with this launch.

 

To push for nationwide presence of distribution, the company has acquired Universal Harvesters Dairy Farm Inc. in Maramag, Bukidnon province, where it also opened the Metro Pacific Dairy Farm state-of-the-art facility that will further boost fresh milk supply by the end of 2025.

 

The brand's new milk products include whole milk, low fat milk, salted caramel milk, and barista fresh milk.

 

- PNA