Jollibee Foods Corp. (JFC), an Asian foodservice company based in the Philippines, and Cargill Philippines, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Cargill Inc., Minnetonka, Minn., entered into an agreement to build and operate a poultry processing plant in Santo Tomas, Batangas, in the Philippines. Cargill and JFC will have a 70% and a 30% stake, respectively, in the joint venture named Cargill Joy Poultry Meats Production, Inc.  Cargill will oversee the setup, management and operations of this facility.

The partnership will create an estimated 1,000 new full-time jobs and develop new opportunities in the farming community in the Batangas and nearby provinces, as local poultry farmers are contracted to grow chicken to supply the requirements of the processing plant.

"We partnered with Cargill to deliver high-quality chicken products through Cargill's technology and quality standards,” says Ernesto Tanmantiong, chief executive officer of JFC. “The facility will provide JFC with dressed and marinated chicken to augment the chicken supply requirements of the growing needs of JFC brands. This partnership will meaningfully benefit our customers, our operations as well as the overall Philippine food industry. We will continue to maintain our strong relationship with key chicken suppliers in the country, and look forward to sustained long-term supply arrangements with them as our businesses grow together.”

"Cargill is making additional investments in the Philippines to participate in the robust growth of its consumer sector,” adds Paul Fullbright, managing director of Cargill Joy Poultry Meats Production. “Cargill can contribute in further enhancing the quality of products of JFC brands for its customers at very competitive costs and raise the assurance of its chicken supply. As in many other parts of the world where we do business, Cargill can also contribute in improving the system of hygiene, food safety and quality by operating a world-class facility and by setting high level of partnership ‎with the poultry growers and farmers. We look forward to a very productive poultry processing venture in the Philippines and with JFC."