URC brands are still top picks among Filipino homes

Tweet

Six brands made by food and beverage firm Universal Robina Corp. (URC) are still among the top choices among millions of Filipino households, according to brand consulting firm Kantar Group’s Brand Footprint report

Three of these brands – C2, Nissin and Cream All – rose in rankings in the yearly study.

Great Taste is among the top 10 most chosen brands in Total FMCG and Beverages sector while Piattos remains among the most chosen food brands.

Payless, meanwhile, landed in the list of 20 most chosen food brands for the first time.

“We are happy to see that our well-loved brands are reaching even more Filipinos, delighting them with good food choices everyday,” said Mian David, URC’s chief marketing officer and managing director of URC International.

“This report also inspires us to continue giving Pinoys products of superior quality and value. Indeed, Great Taste, C2,Piattos, Payless, Nissin and Cream All are just some of our brands loved by Filipinos across generations,” she added.

Kantar’s Brand Footprint study uses a metric called “consumer reach points” (CRP), which measures a brand’s strength based on how many shoppers are buying the brand and how often.

It essentially shows which brands are winning at the point of purchase.

“Filipinos are now spending more on FMCG, presenting a bigger opportunity for more brands to win. Among these brands, many of them are able to do so with improved penetration,” said Mieke Bartholomeus, Strategic Insights Director at Kantar’s Worldpanel Division.

URC’s Great Taste coffee – with 440m CRP – ranked 8th among fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), and fourth in the beverages sector.

Ready-to-drink tea C2’s CRP rose 25 per cent to 32m, making it the 14th most chosen brand in the beverages sector.

The number of households that bought C2 rose by some 281,000 in 2023, with better presence in groceries, sari-sari stores and market stalls.

In the food sector, snack brand Piattos held on to the 7th spot, while Nissin instant noodles climbed to No. 16.

Another instant noodles brand, Payless, broke into the list of Top 20 brands in the segment with a CRP of 74m, landing in 19th place in the food sector and 50th among FMCG brands.

Core variant Payless Xtra Big is still a big draw, while the still small, newly-launched Payless Sakto is already driving traction for the brand.

Cream All went up to No. 19 in the dairy sector.

As part of Kantar, Worldpanel provides brands and retailers with a unique, 360-degree understanding of consumer behavior across the globe. Worldpanel continuously monitors shopping behavior to shape the brands of tomorrow by better understanding people everywhere.

URC produces iconic brands such as Great Taste, C2 Cool & Clean, Piattos, Maxx candy and Cream-O cookies, which have been part of Filipinos’ lives for decades. One of the country’s largest food and beverage manufacturers, URC also has significant, and growing, presence in ASEAN. Its leading regional brands include Lexus, Tivoli and Fun-O.

Brands from food and beverage firm Universal Robina Corp. (URC) continue to be among the top choices among millions of Filipino households, according to brand consulting firm Kantar Group’s Brand Footprint report

Bike for Good: Baker John partners with GMA Kapuso Foundation for Livelihood Project

Tweet

Baker John, Universal Robina Corporation’s (URC) brand of bread, recently teamed up with GMA Kapuso Foundation for the “Bike for Good” project. Through this partnership, 30 beneficiaries will receive bikes and bread products from Baker John.

“Our goal is to provide assistance to those who are trying to adapt to this new, challenging situation in the time of the COVID pandemic. Through this partnership, we hope the beneficiaries selected by GMA Kapuso Foundation will have the will -- and the wheels -- to keep going,” said Ellison Lee, URC Flour and Bread Division’s Managing Director.

 According to Lee, the Bike for Good project provides each of the 30 beneficiaries with a bicycle and a negosyo starter package consisting of Baker John products. “We want to assist them in kicking off their community selling business which can help them with their livelihood,” Lee shared.

TEAMING UP FOR BIKE FOR GOOD. Rikki Escudero-Catibog, GMA Kapuso Foundation Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, (left) and Ellison Lee, URC Flour and Bread Division Managing Director sign the agreement formalizing the partnership for the Bike for Good livelihood donation.

In choosing the beneficiaries, the project prioritizes those who lost their livelihood due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as residents of Metro Manila and Rizal who have lost their source of income due to the typhoons Rolly and/or Ulysses.

PROVIDING LIVELIHOOD THROUGH WHEELS: GMA Kapuso Foundation Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer (left) Rikki Escudero-Catibog together with URC Flour and Bread Division Managing Director Ellison Lee check the bread-and-bike livelihood package from Baker John for the Bike for Good beneficiaries.

Apart from this, GMA Kapuso Foundation chose beneficiaries who are physically able, have the can do spirit, and willing to use the bicycle to sell Baker John’s bread in their community as a source of alternative livelihood for their family.

“COVID and typhoon Ulysses brought economic devastation to residents of NCR. GMA Kapuso Foundation is happy to help Baker John and URC find beneficiaries. It is a very difficult time but in time of great adversity there is also opportunity. Do not lose hope,” stated Ms. Rikki Escudero-Catibog, GMA Kapuso Foundation’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer.

Baker John is URC’s very own line of tasty premium bread products available in selected Robinsons, Rustan’s, Shopwise, and Walter Mart supermarkets, and Ministop branches nationwide. Visit www.urcflour.com today for more information.

  

URC-Thailand cited as among the best companies to work for in Asia

Tweet

Universal Robina Corporation’s (URC) subsidiary in Thailand has been named as among the “Best Companies to Work for in Asia”, for a work culture that values its employees as key resources. 

The award was given by HR Asia, regarded as an authoritative regional publisher on human resources. 

URC (Thailand) Co. Ltd. was among 38 companies to be recognized out of a field of 138 firms. 

The URC Thailand team. In photo (L-R): URC Talent Management & Organization Development Manager Thinathip Sukpluem; Marketing Director Jane Bernardo; General Manager Tanant Suwanraks; HR Director Matthew Dy; Senior Advisor Premchai Navarasuchitr; QA and
 QMS Manager Boonyarat Chunet; and Media and
PR Marketing Manager Pornsulee Piboonsatsanasakul 

The companies were selected through a survey that measured different aspects of employee engagement. This covered culture and ethics, leadership and organization, active initiatives, emotional engagement, employee intention and motivation, behavior and advocacy, collective consciousness, workplace sentiment, and team dynamics. 

“One of the reasons for our company’s sustainable momentum is the high priority we place on all our employees as key resources,” said Matthew Dy, URC-Thailand’s HR director, who received the award. 

“We promote a culture of openness and collaboration where all employees are always given the opportunity to develop their individual performance and contribute to the business objectives,” he said.

 

Dy said this is done via a “robust performance management system, career planning and individual development plans” aimed at creating a “future-ready organization”. 

“We cultivate a sense of belongingness through relevant workplace initiatives, advocating social responsibility and consistently instilling our core values. This ensures that our employees continue to deliver high-quality products and services that genuinely bring delight and joy for our consumers,” he said. 

Established over 20 years ago, URC Thailand manufactures and exports brands such as Jack ‘n Jill Fun-O, Tivoli, Roller Coaster, Lausanne, Dewberry, Dynamite and Lush. 

It has a factory, research and development center and warehouses at the Samutsakorn Industrial Estate, and a head office in Bangkok. 

URC is one of the Philippines’ largest food and beverage companies, producing popular brands such as C2, Great Taste, Piattos, Cream-O, Maxx, Nova and Nissin. URC is also a major player in agro-industrial and commodities. 

Matthew Dy, HR Director of URC (Thailand) Co., Ltd. receives the award from Virote Sirichanthanont, VP of Government and International Relations of the Personnel Management Association of Thailand (PMAT).