CEBU—Atlas Fertilizer Corp. (AFC) bared on Tuesday its plan to invest more than P1 billion for the rehabilitation of its existing manufacturing plant in Toledo City, which is expected to increase annual production capacity by 20 percent to 40 percent.
AFC President and CEO Takashi Sumi said this initiative will take about three or four more years to happen because the facility still needs to operate on a regular basis.
“If we stop it, many farmers will get into trouble. So we have to keep [it] running every day,” he told reporters during a news briefing coinciding with the company’s 60th anniversary celebration.
Established in 1957, AFC is now the country’s leader in crop-specific soil-fertilization technology. It has the largest compound as inorganic fertilizer manufacturer.
It is the oldest and the first fertilizer company in the Philippines to achieve full-scale manufacturing of a complete line of mixed fertilizer grades, or the NP-NPK-NK fertilizers.
While considered an industry leader, the company is not complacent in its current stature as it keeps up with the times as the market progresses.
Sumi said the manufacturing plant needs to be “refreshed” since it’s already been running for six decades.
“There are so many old equipment, and also the building. So we have to rehabilitate this even better. Then, we can maintain that for another 20 or 30 years,” he said.
As part of its anniversary affair, the firm recently inaugurated its new state-of-the-art administration building within its 17-hectare property in Toledo, which can accommodate 300 employees.
“Besides that, we also have to increase our capacity,” Sumi added, citing data showing the agriculture sector is growing not as high as that of the GDP.
He estimates that the fertilizer industry expands incrementally by around 1 percent to 1.5 percent annually.
“So, if this growth continues for another 10 or 20 years, of course, our capacity is not enough. We have to catch up with this market growth,” Sumi added.
Volume-wise, he said the current size of the Philippine fertilizer market stands at 1.8 million metric tons (MT). NPK fertilizer accounts for 650,000 MT to 700,000 MT annually.
AFC now holds 25-percent share of the total market, with an output aggregating to 500,000 MT of fertilizers, of which 300,000 MT are manufacturing grades or 45 percent of the NPK fertilizer segment and 200,000 MT are imported and direct sales grades outsourced from Canada, China and Morocco.
The company remains the pioneer in deploying agronomists, people who are equipped with knowledge of proper fertilization technologies, in the field to teach farmers the best way to fertilize their crops.
Looking forward, AFC seeks to continuously provide the farmers with the appropriate fertilizer technologies that will result to higher yields and better income for them.
“Our mission is for Filipino farmers and Philippine agriculture to be successful. Fertilization is a major factor that contributes to harvest yield and high-quality fertilizer applied at the proper time will help lead to a profitable harvest,” Sumi added.