RFM Corporation

RFM Corporation (PSE: RFM) is a publicly listed food and beverage company in the Philippines. RFM is a manufacturer of flour and flour-based products, milk, juice drinks and ice cream. As of June 2013, RFM had an asset base of P12 billion and a total market capitalization of P17.1 billion.^[1]

History

RFM Corporation was incorporated in August 16, 1957 as Republic Flour Mills Inc. to manufacture flour in the Philippines, despite wheat not being grown in the Philippines. Its founders included Salvador Z. Araneta, Jose N. Concepcion, Sr., B.J. Server, Albino Z. SyCip, Zoilo Alberto, Francisco D. Gamboa, Edward Miller Grimm, Leonardo Eugenio, David SyCip and Charles “Chick” Parsons.^[2] In 1963, RFM began manufacturing cooking oil and margarine. Two years later, started manufacturing poultry and hog feeds. In 1971, RFM integrated forward into hog and poultry breeding. It entered into a licensing agreement with Peterson Farms and H&N, Inc. to breed day-old chicks. In 1973, RFM entered into an exclusive licensing agreement with Swift & Company to use the brand “Swift” for its meat processing business (in 1987, RFM purchased ownership rights for its exclusive use in the Philippines). For the next 15 years, RFM concentrated on growing its established core businesses and also introduced other grocery products, such as cake mixes, hotcake mixes, and ingredient mixes.

As it entered the 1990s, RFM began acquiring of a number of local companies and established partnerships with foreign companies. First, it acquired Cosmos Bottling Corporation, the maker of Sarsi and Pop Cola soft drink brands, from the Wong family in 1989. A year later, it acquired the Selecta ice cream brand from the founding Arce family.

In 1994, RFM divested its interest in hog operations and the poultry operations became known as Swift Foods Inc. (SFI). Also in the same year, Swift Foods Inc., Selecta Dairy Products Inc. and Cosmos Bottling Corporation conducted an initial public offering of its shares of stock through the Philippine Stock Exchange. In 1995, RFM Properties and Holdings, Inc. was established to consolidate RFM’s real estate assets as well as break into the property development business. The company was later renamed Philippine Townships, Inc. and finally as Philtown Properties, Inc in 2008.

Between 1995 and 2000, RFM briefly ventured into noodle manufacturing, tuna processing, bakeshop business with the acquisition of the Rolling Pin trademark, food franchising (Little Caesars Pizza and Dairy Queen) and thrift banking (Consumer Bank).

In 1999, RFM formed a partnership with Unilever to produce and market its Selecta ice cream under the joint-venture company, Selecta Walls Inc., (now, Unilever-RFM Ice Cream Inc.).

In 2001, RFM sold its soft drink subsidiary Cosmos Bottling Corporation to Coca-Cola Bottlers Philippines, Inc.^[3][4] Cosmos continued to be listed in the Philippine Stock Exchange until 2013.^[5]

In 2003, RFM spun off Swift Foods Inc. to become a separately owned company.^[6][7]

Recent developments

RFM significantly reduced its holdings in Philtown Properties, Inc. after 66% of the outstanding shares were declared as property dividends in 2008 and 15% in 2009.^[8][9]

In November 2012, RFM sold its Swift branded meat business to the Pacific Meat Company Inc. (PMCI). RFM said the transaction's total value can reach between P800 million and P850 million.^[10][11][12]

In January 2014, RFM acquired the Royal pasta brand from Unilever Philippines Inc. for $47.8 million (around P2.1 billion). The acquisition of the Royal pasta brand will allow the company to solidify its market leadership in the pasta category in the country. RFM's Fiesta brand is currently the top pasta brand in the Philippines, while the Royal brand is second.^[13][14][15]

Products

Subsidiaries

• Unilever-RFM Ice Cream, Inc. was established in 1999 as Selecta Walls, Inc., a joint-venture with Unilever Philippines Inc. The venture took over the Selecta ice cream business, previously under Selecta Dairy Products Inc.
• Interbake Commissary Corporation was established in 1998 to manufacture baked goods to compliment RFM's business in the food services category. The company caters to wholesale markets such as restaurants, food chains and the like.
• Filipinas Bottled Water Company is a joint venture with Indonesia's P.T. Aqua Golden Mississippi, Southeast Asia's largest bottled water producer.
• RFM Insurance Brokers, Inc. services the insurance needs of the RFM Group.
• Rizal Lighterage Corporation is a barging company that transports food commodities like wheat, soya bean and fishmeal via barges along the Pasig River.
• Kettle Foods Corporation - Kettle Korn

Corporate social responsibility

RFM Foundation Inc. is the social development arm of the company. Among its notable projects are the Ten Outstanding Students of the Philippines and Project Pagsulong.

The Ten Outstanding Students of the Philippines seeks to honor students who made excellent academic performances and their contributions to society.

Project Pagsulong invites young Filipinos form a team and come up with innovative business ideas good enough to stand against proposals from other teams, as well as viable enough to provide real-life solutions for alleviating poverty.

See also

• Pop Cola Panthers

References

External links

• RFM Corporation

 This article incorporates text available under the CC BY-SA 1.0 license.