Oishi, Zest-O strengthen global presence

Homegrown brands Oishi and Zest-O continue to strengthen their international footprint with billions worth of investments abroad.

Top officials of Liwayway Marketing Corp. and Zest-O Corp., two privately held companies, told The STAR that their respective firms are not letting up on their expansion binge abroad in hopes of making their products global brands.

Liwayway chairman Carlos Chan said his company is infusing another $20 million in the Indonesian market to put up a new factory there for Oishi’s snack food line.

Chan said the new plant, which would commence operations next year, is located

in Surabaya and would support the capacity of its existing snack food plant in Jakarta.

Oishi’s new investment is on top of a recent $15 million investment to mark the company’s foray into the South African market.

Chan said the firm’s maiden South African plant, located in Johannesburg would, start commercial operation next month.

“It’s a new market for us. Everyone is in Asia already, but there (South Africa), there is not much snack food yet. So we will try this market, but I think our chances are good. We had a survey there and people there like snack food,” Chan said.

Oishi offers a wide array of products such as corn, potato, savory, vegetable, and sweet snacks.

Aside from its operations in the Philippines, the Liwayway Group has presence in China, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar, India, Indonesia, and now, Africa.

Meanwhile, beverage manufacturer Zest-O is also undertaking an international expansion of its own, said its chairman Alfredo Yao.

Yao said Zest-O is making its foray in the Indonesian market by yearend with the start of production of its new beverage plant in the Southeast Asian country.

He said the company is also making its entry in Thailand and Myanmar, with new plants expected to be completed in one and a half years.

“We have to expand abroad. The opportunities and population in these (Indonesia, Thailand, and Myanmar) markets are big,” Yao said.

Founded in 1981, Zest-O is behind products like Zest-O juice drinks, fruit sodas, and Choc-O dairy drink.

Apart from the Philippines, Zest-O has production plants in China and US.