VILLANUEVA, Misamis Oriental—Coca-Cola Bottlers Philippines Inc. (CCBPI) inaugurated on Tuesday its newest plant that features state-of-the-art bottling technology that will further transform this second-class and most progressive municipality in Misamis Oriental into an industrial hub of Northern Mindanao.
Sitting on an 11-hectare property, the CCBPI Misamis Oriental plant is the realization of a part of Coca-Cola’s committed $3-billion investment in the Philippines, said CCBPI chief executive officer Bill Schultz.
“Our Misamis Oriental plant is our first Greenfield operation in almost 10 years, where we are building a plant from the ground up, instead of just upgrading existing facilities. We’re inaugurating an environmentally and technologically world-class facility. This is a very exciting time for us,” he said.
The CCBPI Misamis Oriental plant, which is due for a silver-LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification because of its building approach and environmental conservation capabilities, “is the single biggest plant in Mindanao” of the CCBPI family, said Irial Finan, president of Coca-Cola’s Bottling Investments Group.
“Sustainability is always part of the way we do business. From day one, when we were conceptualizing this plant, we’ve made the welfare of the environment and the local community our top priority. Aside from its strategic location, the decision to build our newest plant on this site was also made based on the minimum impact it will have on the natural resources of the area, as well as the surrounding communities,” he said.
The LEED certification is given by the United States Green Building Council to buildings with capabilities in water efficiency, energy efficiency, resources conservation, as well as occupational safety.
Schultz said part of the plant’s environmental features include rainwater harvesting, state-of-the-art technology for wastewater treatment, solid waste segregation, high efficiency motors to reduce air pollution, LED lighting fixtures and water conservation features in the site services.
The plant also uses rice hull for its boiler, added Schultz.
The CCBPI Misamis Oriental plant is strategically located to improve Coca-Cola’s production and distribution capability in Mindanao. It will also serve part of the Visayas region.
“The Misamis Oriental plant will tremendously boosts our efforts at attracting investors to Misamis Oriental,” said Gov. Oscar Moreno.
Moreno said the province is “very fortunate that Coca-Cola is calling Misamis Oriental one of its homes” as it will greatly impact the revenue of the province in terms of investment and direct taxes, as well as reduce its unemployment rate.
Villanueva, which is home to the Phividec Industrial Estate (PIE), has an unemployment rate of 29.4 percent.
The CCBPI Misamis Oriental plant is projected to reduce this rate by 10 percent, said Mayor Juliet Uy.
Uy said while Villanueva is largely and basically an agricultural town, much like the rest of Misamis Oriental, it is projecting itself as the industrial hub of Northern Mindanao and the entire Mindanao island because of the PIE.
Among the PIE’s locators are companies like Philippine Sinter Corp., STEAG State Power Inc., and Purina. And with the latest locator, the CCBPI Misamis Oriental plant, the town is on its way to reducing poverty in Misamis Oriental.
“Poverty alleviation through industrialization must be given emphasis without harming agriculture and other traditional sources of livelihood of our people,” Uy said.
The Misamis Oriental plant is the latest plant of the CCBPI family, which has plants in Laguna, General Santos City, Davao City and Zamboanga City.
