Nestle: No plans to close manufacturing facilities in Philippines

NESTLE Philippines, Inc. on Friday said it is not planning to close “any of its manufacturing facilities in the Philippines.”
“Coffee under our Nescafe brand remains to be a core pillar for us, and we are committed to support the local coffee industry and our coffee farmers to growth,” the Swiss food giant said in a statement.
Nestle issued the statement after news reports quoted an official as saying the company may shutter its coffee processing plant in the Philippines over the lack of tax incentives.
“We have been operating in the Philippines for 107 years now, and we look forward to doing business here in the next 100 years. Nestlé is here to stay,” the company added.
Nestle, which operates a coffee processing plant in Cagayan de Oro, earlier complained its Nescafe products are competing at a disadvantage with Indonesia’s Kopiko.
Since its 3-in-1 coffee mix are imported, Kopiko incurs a much lower operating cost, and is able to put aside more for marketing and promotional campaigns. Nestle, on the other hand, pays for its sugar requirement — sourced locally — at twice that of world market prices.
The company is seeking incentives for local manufacturers, like itself, that source agricultural raw materials locally. — Janina C. Lim