SMC assures Luzon residents there's enough food supply until April 14

Diversified conglomerate San Miguel Corp. (SMC) on Friday assured people in Luzon that its food manufacturing facilities are producing enough food supply enough to last until the end of the enhanced community quarantine due to COVID-19 threat.

“In these difficult times, we want to assure Filipinos that there is enough food for everyone. We have taken steps to ensure our employees’ safety and well-being, as they take on the challenge,” SMC said in a statement.

SMC is the parent firm of San Miguel Food and Beverage Inc., which is behind food household brands PureFoods, Magnolia, Monterey, and San Mig Coffee.

SMC said its facilities can produce 1.96 million kilos fresh poultry, beef and pork products; 524,000 kilos of canned meat, nuggets and hotdogs; 2.11 million kilos of flour, biscuits, pandesal and nutribun.

SMC's statement came in the face of hoarding and panic buying frenzy due to the scare brought about by the coronavirus diseases 2019 as well as uncertainties over the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon.

On the other hand, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) on Thursday released a memorandum circular against hoarding and panic-buying and set a limit on how many items a consumer can purchase, and such quantity should be sufficient to meet their needs only for a maximum of seven days. —Ted Cordero/LBG, GMA News