RFM seeks lifting of Australia’s ban on Selecta ice cream

Food and beverage holding firm RFM Corp. will seek the lifting of the ban imposed by Australia on imports of Selecta ice cream products, pointing out that all ingredients used for ice cream making are sourced mainly from Australia itself.

RFM president and chief executive officer Jose A. Concepcion said the move is in response to reports that the Australian government had imposed an indefinite ban on Philippine-made ice cream products due to the incidence of the foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) affecting the country’s livestock.

Concepcion stressed that all products of Selecta, RFM’s ice-cream unit, meet the highest standards of quality at par with international requirements.

"Selecta products conform to world-class standards in ice cream making and use ingredients coming from Australia, New Zealand and the United States, such as milk solids and even for cheese mouthfills that are found in its Quezo Real ice cream variant," Concepcion said.

"Our exports of Selecta ice cream should not at all be affected by any foot-and-mouth disease issue in the country," he said.

Concepcion noted that Selecta’s ice cream plant in the country was even given an A-rating and world-class recognition by its multinational partner and the world’s biggest ice cream producer, Unilever, as it regularly evaluates the condition of all its ice cream plants all over the world.

Moreover, Concepcion said Selecta ice cream products are also exported to other countries with strict quality standards like the US, Canada and Japan. "It is the same high quality Selecta ice cream that can be found here in the Philippines and in any place in the world."

Selecta is a 50-50 joint venture between RFM and Unilever. RFM handles the exportation of all products of the joint venture.

Concepcion explained that the issue on banning was mainly due to the reclassification of the product from iced confectionery to dairy product, which would now require the importers of Selecta in Australia to secure an import dairy permit.

"RFM will assist them in complying with all the necessary requirements to secure an import dairy permit that will enable consumers in Australia to continue to enjoy Selecta ice cream products," Concepcion said.