Vitarich gears up for growth by doubling capacities

Vitarich Corporation, a local poultry and feeds firm, is and its toll partners are doubling the capacity of their feed mills nationwide amid optimism that it will continue to grow its market share despite stiff competition.

“Vitarich’s record performance in 2016 effectively fuels the company’s growth plans for the coming year and beyond,” said Vitarich President and Chief Executive Officer Ricardo Manuel Sarmiento.

He added that the company is gearing up for expansion in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao to meet the increased demand for food and animal feed across the country.

Sarmiento said they will be investing R80 million for company-owned feed mills while their toll partners will be shouldering their own expansion costs. Toll partners are feeds suppliers who are assured of a certain volume of purchases by Vitarich.

He also noted that Vitarich will soon be opening a new animal feed mill in Davao which will be operational by July 2017. This will effectively more than double Vitarich’s animal feed production capacity in Mindanao.

“We will also double the capacity of our Davao dressing plant from 471,000 heads to 942,000 heads per month,” Sarmiento said.

In the Visayas, the company is in the process of expanding and automating its Iloilo feed mill, effectively doubling its capacity to produce animal feed, from an average of 93,600 of 50-kg bags per month in 2016 to around 187,200 of 50-kg bags a month in 2017.

In Luzon, Vitarich’s toll partners have expanded as well, doubling the company’s production capacity by 67 percent for animal feeds and 40 percent for aqua feeds.

In line with their expansion plans, Vitarich is looking for partners and end-customers with the same mindset to expand the company’s sales and distribution network.

“We are looking for more contract growers in the Visayas area as well as more chicken breeders and hog breeder farms in Luzon to meet the increased demand for food products,” he announced.