The Zobels’ Ayala Land Logistics Holdings Corporation (ALLHC) is seeking to ramp up its cold storage business as the industry is seen to grow by at least four times its current size because the need for food logistics in the country remains largely underserved.

In a presentation during the Philippine Stock Exchange’s PSE Strengthening and Reach (PSE STAR): Investor Day, ALLHC President Jose Emmanuel Jalandoni said that, “essentially demand is quite high from institutional users, supermarkets, convenience store restaurants, food manufacturers.”

“If you look at the Philippines in terms of per capita capacity, we're only at 0.04 cubic meters versus Vietnam’s of 0.17 (cubic meters). So, if we just follow what happened to Vietnam, the cold storage business can quadruple in the Philippines,” he added. 

ALLHC, through its cold storage business ALogis Artico, has a total capacity of 10,000 pallets in its three facilities — two in Binan, Laguna and the recently opened one in Mandaue, Cebu. 

It is also looking to put up a facility in Batangas and in Pampanga. In Pampanga, ALLHC is looking to service food growers from as far as Baguio. 

“If you look at Pampanga, it's actually in the middle of Luzon. And if you look at Luzon, it's where the country produces much of its food. In Baguio, in the colder areas in the mountain area, it's a vegetable granary. And in Nueva Ecija, you have rice and other crops,” Jalandoni said. 

He added that, “what we want to do in Pampanga is actually create immediately cold storage facilities and dry storage facilities so that it can serve the needs of food producers in all of Luzon, which is actually lacking right now.”

Jalandoni said that once the facility is done, the area will then have a “proper food terminal where facilities are in place, proper terminals for trucks, for delivery vehicles, proper terminal for actually people to trade.” 

“And, with the proper warehousing and cold storage facilities. I think you have now the elements of a modern food terminal,” he said.