Unilever aims to be halal hub in SE Asia
Unilever Philippines, the local unit of the global consumer goods giant, expects to become the halal hub for Southeast Asia and Australia through its recently opened halal-certified P1.7billion food processing plant in Cavite.
Unilever Philippines chairman Benjie Yap said in a briefing yesterday the company’s factory in Cavite has earned halal certification early this year, allowing the firm to provide specific product requirements of more consumers.
“We’re looking at exporting to Malaysia which requires some halal products specifically. And we’re looking at expanding also to other Muslim population in Southeast Asia,” Yap said.
“We cater to a wide variety of consumers, even in Muslim Mindanao so we want to make sure that we provide products for them and for other Muslim countries as well. Basically, we want to provide a variety of choices for different individuals across the region,” he added.
Unilever manufactures popular brands like Knorr and Lady’s Choice in its Cavite factory. The company also has two other manufacturing facilities in the country located in Paco, Manila (for home care and personal care products) and in Pasig (for ice cream).
Unilever also recently started construction of its largest distribution center in the Philippines, which forms part of the company’s six-year, P6 billion investment commitment in the country.
Spanning 13.7 hectares, the distribution center is located at the heart of Luzon’s manufacturing and industrial hub in Cabuyao, Laguna which will house 130,000 pallets and 97 loading docks.
“We’re really very hopeful about the business and the economy moving forward and this reflects in the investments and the money that we’re putting in to help drive the company forward in the country,” Yap said.
“There are more for future investments that we are still reviewing. There are also some products which we are importing right now that again we are reviewing if can localize and export. Once the review is finalized, there will be new investments coming in,” he added.