TWO of the largest alcoholic beverage companies in the Philippines have boosted their production of rubbing alcohol to donate to the frontline facilities and workers battling the spread of the 2019 coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Lucio C. Tan’s Tanduay Distillers, Inc., and Absolut Distillers, Inc. (ADI) have started producing rubbing alcohol. So far, they have donated 50,000 4-liter bottles of 70% ethyl alcohol to the Department of Health and another 50,000 bottles to non-governmental organizations, which aid in distributing resources to health facilities.

“During these challenging times, it’s important that we step up and help each other. We have transformed our distilleries to produce ethyl alcohol to supply the need of our kababayans,” said Gerardo T. Tee, ADI chief operating officer and overall general manager for distillery operation of the LT Group, Inc.

Meanwhile, San Miguel Corp. (SMC) announced in a separate statement that all the facilities of its liquor arm Ginebra San Miguel, Inc. (GSMI) will be increasing their production of rubbing alcohol to 100,000 liters each day.

“So far, we have donated 29,300 liters of 70% ethyl alcohol to 77 hospitals throughout Metro Manila, as well as the Department of Health, crisis centers, local government units, law enforcement agencies, and other vital institutions,” SMC President Ramon S. Ang said.

Most of its alcohol production come from GSMI’s Cabuyao plant in Laguna. SMC runs Ginebra plants in Pangasinan, Isabela, Albay, Negros Occidental, and Cebu.

Both top listed firms plan to expand their alcohol productions from Luzon to other parts of the country.

On Wednesday, shares in LT Group grew by 2.9% to close at P6.38 each, while SMC shares also inched up by 0.6% to close at P87.00 apiece. — Adam J. Ang

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