New look, same taste

WHILE Carmen’s Best ice cream is expanding thanks to its corporate ties to the MVP group — through its partnership with Metro Pacific Agro Ventures (MPAV), under Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC) — it still keeps a taste of the wholesome family goodness we’ve come to know.

Carmen’s Best was established in 2009 by Paco Magsaysay (a descendant of former president Ramon Magsaysay, and the son of former senator Ramon Magsaysay, Jr.). Last year, the conglomerate acquired a 51% stake in Carmen’s Best, while Mr. Magsaysay and his family retained 49%. The Carmen’s Best group consists of Carmen’s Best Dairy Products, Inc., Carmen’s Best International Dairy Co., Inc., Real Fresh Dairy Farms, Inc., and The Laguna Creamery, Inc.

Earlier this week, the brand launched two commercials — one on how the ice cream is made with fresh ingredients, another featuring a child and her ill grandmother — three holiday flavors, and new packaging, in an event at BGC.

The holiday flavors are Eggnog (with a cinnamon base), S’mores (with a marshmallow base and graham crackers), and Mint Chocolate.

The new packaging is quite different from the simple graphic blue and white original, which was consistent throughout the line, with just the flavor’s name distinguishing between the pints. Now each flavor will be represented by graphics of the ingredients it’s made with, with a color palate of white and gold. All these will be centered around a single drop of milk. “At the heart of it is that milk drop, which represents what makes it unique,” MPAV Chief Commercial Officer Toby Gatchalian said in an interview.

During the event, it was also announced that the brand will be opening a second store in SM Mall of Asia (its first being in Rockwell).

OF COWS AND KALE
MPAV Chief Executive Officer Jovy Hernandez told ����ý that they will be building the country’s largest dairy facility, also in Laguna, where Carmen’s Best’s plant is located. The facility will house at least 1,000 cows, 600 of which will be milk-producing. As of the moment, Mr. Hernandez said that they have 100 cows. “Kapag naging 600 iyan, can you imagine? It’s six times the production.”

When they acquired Carmen’s Best last year, it was because they saw gaps in the dairy industry. “We discovered that only 1% of milk production in the Philippines was local,” he said. They promise to keep the quality though: “When we invested, we said we need to be able to keep what has been developed, which we think is best. The no-shortcut policy is still there,” he said, talking about the use of 100% fresh milk in Carmen’s Best products.

They’re moving into other pastures as well: last year they announced a new greenhouse project, with 3.5 hectares in Bulacan, said Mr. Hernandez. This aims to produce green, leafy vegetables like kale and spinach, with harvest time set every 27 days for the whole year round. “This is like a food factory for us. The promise is for us, that once at full capacity, we’ll be producing 1,600 metric tons of vegetables annually.”

He pointed out that before the pandemic, MPIC was all about infrastructure, with holdings in hospitals, tollways, energy, water, and telecommunications. “During the pandemic, when there were a lot of challenges in the distribution of food, we said agri is one fantastic pillar of any economy. Why aren’t we doing anything in the agriculture side?”

“There has to be a more conscious effort from the group — from the private sector in general — [that we] should be looking at the agricultural sector for food sustainability,” he said.

MPIC is one of three key Philippine units of First Pacific, the others being Philex Mining Corp. and PLDT, Inc.

Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a majority stake in ����ý through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Joseph L. Garcia