Mega Global names new chief executive as founder steps down

CANNED sardines manufacturer Mega Global Corp. has named a new chief executive officer as the company inaugurated its P1-billion manufacturing plant in Sto. Tomas, Batangas on Wednesday.

During the plant’s launch, Mega Global Founder William Tiu Lim announced that he is stepping down as the company’s chief executive and will be replaced by Michelle Tiu Lim-Chan, who served as chief operating officer.

“We would like our children, our younger generations, to take over… effective today,” he said during the launch. He will remain as the board chairman.

Mega Global’s new facility currently has one operational manufacturing line with a daily production capacity of 300,000 cans.

The Batangas plant is the company’s first plant in Luzon and its third in the country after the two Zamboanga plants. Its construction was announced in November 2020.

According to Mega Global Chief Growth and Development Officer Marvin Tiu Lim, there are still two additional production lines to be placed in the new plant.

“Currently we only have one line here and then we ordered another two lines coming. It’s not yet here. That will beef it up to 900,000 [cans], plus in Zamboanga, we have 2.4 million cans. But this is just a capacity, this all depends on the fish catch,” he said.

He said that Mega Global is eyeing an 18% sales increase this year after posting the same growth rate last year. He did not provide specific figures.

He said the company is banking on increased distribution and increased output with the new manufacturing plant, and the introduction of new products to reach its sales target.

“The drivers would be increased distribution, increased productivity in terms of production because of our new plants, new products that we will be producing and selling to the market and beefing up our sales team, beefing up our distribution system, investing in more down-line operations meaning developing grassroots distribution, making sure that our products are accessible to more and more Filipinos,” Mr. Lim said.

Mr. Lim said that Mega Global is expecting an improved supply of tamban used in production following the end of the closed fishing in Zamboanga.

“Last year, there’s a big shortage of tamban,” he said. “[From] Nov. 30 to March 1, there is the closed fishing season so that the fish can reproduce. We’re hoping that this season will be good and fish will be abundant so we can lower the price, provide better fish and make sure that availability is there,” Mr. Lim said.

“We’re very hopeful fish catch will be better both in Zamboanga and in the Bicol region. Hopefully, we’ll be able to provide more stocks,” he added.

The new plant is under Mega Global’s subsidiary, Mega Prime Foods Inc., which is in charge of the parent firm’s sales and distribution.

Meanwhile, Ms. Tiu Lim-Chan said that the plan for Mega Global to have an initial public offering (IPO) is still in the works. The company previously said that it aims to conduct an IPO by 2025.

“We are in the process to be IPO-able. Definitely, we want to make our company IPO-able. No definite timetable. It is in the works,” she said.

Trade Secretary Alfredo E. Pascual told reporters in a separate interview that Mega Global’s Sto. Tomas facility was registered under the Board of Investments on Feb. 28, which allows it to avail of fiscal incentives such as an income tax holiday under Republic Act No. 11534 or the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises Act. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave