Nestlé to export malt from Batangas plant
By Arra B. Francia, Reporter
NESTLÉ Philippines, Inc. is looking to export processed malt to other countries once the company opens its new facility in Batangas by the end of the year.
The food and beverage giant is currently constructing a P2-billion facility in Lipa, Batangas that will process cassava and barley to create proto-malt, the chief ingredient in Nestlé’s Milo brand.
The plant’s total capacity is at around 35,000 metric tons (MT) of malt annually, more than the 25,000 MT needed for local Milo production.
“We’re opening, inaugurating a malt plant in Lipa that manufactures the main ingredient of Milo, which is protomalt… I think that will have (excess) for export,” said Ernesto S. Mascenon, Nestlé Philippines senior vice-president and head of corporate affairs, in an interview.
He estimated the excess at 25,000, which may be for export to Singapore, Malaysia and Africa, which he described as “big Milo markets.”
The completion of the malt plant in the country will make it the group’s fourth in the world, after Singapore, Nigeria and Australia.
“Normally we import that from Singapore but now since we’re opening it here, we’ll be buying local cassava,” Mr. Mascenon said, noting that Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol is “very happy” with the investment.
The company has also tapped the agriculture department to help source around 70,000 MT of cassava annually for the facility.
“The problem with the Philippines [is] there’s no cassava processor that can make it into powder that can meet the quality standards of Nestlé. So right now what we’re doing is we’re lining up the suppliers. We’re helping them, advising them now to meet the quality standards,” Mr. Mascenon said.
With the two-hectare facility slated to be highly automated, Nestlé would be needing only around 23 operators and technicians to work inside the plant. The malt factory will be the third facility inside the 29-hectare Lipa factory complex, the first two of which manufacture Milo and Breakfast Cereals.
Asked on why the firm decided to put up the facility in the Philippines, Mr. Mascenon cited the big supply of cassava in the country.
In 2016 alone, local cassava output amounted to 2.755 million MT, according to data from the Philippine Statistics Authority.
The Philippines is the second largest Milo market in the world, according to the company’s Web site.
