San Miguel Foods, San Miguel Corp.’s (SMC) food unit, said its meat products and canned goods would remain available in supermarkets and other retail outlets amid the concerns raised about import restrictions and a surge in meat material prices.
In a statement, San Miguel Foods, which owns the Purefoods brand, allayed fears of a looming shortage of meat products such as hotdogs and luncheon meat, saying it had enough supply.
“Since the start of the pandemic, our Food business has strived to make our supply chains more agile and resilient. As a result, we have expanded our raw material supply sources, and have also increased our flexibility in terms of production,” SMC President Ramon Ang said.
San Miguel Foods admitted that tight supply, price hikes, and import restrictions due to the Covid-19 pandemic, African Swine Fever (ASF), and avian flu had affected the supply of raw materials. San Miguel Foods is the leading importer of meat products, using close to 100,000 metric tons of raw materials per year.
In March 2021, the Department of Agriculture (DA) temporarily banned imports from several countries, covering domestic and wild birds and poultry products such as meat, eggs, and day-old chicks due to the H5N8 highly pathogenic avian influenza virus. Pork products from Malaysia were also banned due to reported cases of ASF and avian flu.
San Miguel Foods said it was “confident that with keener anticipation of global trends and its ability to make quick adjustments in production, it can sustain and assure availability of its products.”
“When you have enough meat and packaging materials, along with ample manufacturing capacity, you can ensure continuous supply,” it said. Charlene Grace Lao