Dole Philippines may sell more locally

MANILA, Philippines - Major fruit exporter Dole Philippines, Inc. is looking at selling more of its products locally over the next couple of years, even as it focuses on improving exports. The company does not expect growth double-digit growth this year due to rising fuel and raw material costs, as well as the dollar’s weakness, Dole Philippines Vice-President and Managing Director Kevin Davis said in a recent interview. Dole is trying to improve its exports to Asia, the Middle East, New Zealand, Australia, the United States and Europe. "Our domestic market is fairly small — less than 5%. We will increase it when opportunities arise," he said. Mr. Davis said this year’s growth would also depend on the weather. "We still expect positive growth both for domestic and export markets," he added. He said the company plans to expand its Mindanao plantation, product line and other facilities, but declined to say how much Dole is investing. "We put considerable amount of money [in] the Philippines every year. We invest as we see opportunities," he pointed out. Dole Philippines is a fully owned subsidiary of US multinational Dole Food Co., which produces fruits, nuts, vegetables, canned pineapple and pineapple-based beverages. Local operations account for more than half of Dole Food Company’s total pineapple output. About 95% of the total production is exported. Dole Philippines has 9,600 hectares — about the size of 24,000 football fields — of pineapple plantation maintained by the firm and another 4,200 hectares planted by contract growers. Its pineapple plantations are in the towns of Polomolok, Tupi, T’boli and Surallah in South Cotabato province and the municipalities of Maasim and Malungon in Sarangani. - B.S. Sto. Domingo, BusinessWorld