Century Pacific earnings up 20% to P4.7 billion

MANILA, Philippines — Po family-led Century Pacific Food Inc. (CNPF), reported a 20 percent growth in net income to P4.7 billion last year on higher revenues.

Total revenue grew 13 percent to P54.7 billion.

CNPF executive chairman Christopher Po said the company posted two consecutive years of extraordinary performance despite the challenging environment.

“Despite operating in a hectic and stressful environment, the company has demonstrated resilience largely due to the essentials and staples nature of our portfolio,” he said.

This year, Po said uncertainty remains with the high-inflation environment, even as CNPF started off the year at a favorable pace with first quarter revenue growth at high single-digit, fueled by the branded segment.

“2022 is shaping up to be another challenging year with pandemic disruptions and geopolitical events resulting in a high-inflation environment. We continued to see strong revenue growth in the first quarter, but significant uncertainty lies ahead,” he said.

Moving forward, CNPF will continue to invest in the business while mitigating the new risks that emerged, to deliver decent business results, Po said.

The company attributed last year’s strong performance to robust sales of CNPF’s tuna and coconut OEM exports business and the strong performance of the branded segment, composed of marine, meat, milk and other emerging businesses, despite the high base from the year before.

Among the different businesses, OEM exports increased by 29 percent year-on-year, which CNPF attributed to the global economic reopening and higher demand for healthier products. The company’s branded segment, recorded a double-digit growth of 10 percent.

Chad Manapat, CNPF chief finance officer, said demand for consumer staples remained resilient last year.

“Consumers are feeling the strain from this prolonged pandemic, leading them to prioritize spending and predisposing them to gravitate towards essentials and value for money brands. As a company focused on providing affordable food options, Century was able to cater to their needs, which in turn led to market share gains for our brands,” Manapat said.

CNPF has likewise benefitted from favorable tax rates due to the implementation of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act, allowing the company to reinvest in growth and sustainability programs.