Purefoods-Hormel bares '99 results

The Purefoods-Hormel Co. delivered excellent corporate results in its first full year of operation as a joint-venture company, registering a significant volume tonnage growth of 32 percent over the previous year's.

Pure Foods' largest operating division, the Processed Meat Division, was spun off in January 1999 into a joint-venture with US-based Hormel Foods International and formed this new company.

Refrigerated meats, considered the company's biggest and fastest growing business category, set the pace with an impressive 52 percent increase in volume tonnage.

In the key hotdog market, Purefoods Hormel strengthened its dominant market-share position with respectable 49.5 percent share level as compared to 1998's 44.6 percent. Fueled by price reduction moves and strong marketing initiatives, the brands "Tender Juicy" hotdogs and mid-priced segment hotdog leader "Beefies", registered record highs in volume and market-share levels, month after month, in 1999. Purefoods-Hormel's Tender Juicy hotdog's "Batang Alvin" TV commercial also helped the brand reinforce its overall market dominance.

Despite a highly competitive environment, the cold cuts line reversed a volume decline in the previous year as a result of cost reduction moves and highly successful wet market expansion of the "Pritong Pinoy" line. "Fiesta Hams" posted strong institutional and consumer sales in December 1999, which once more proved that the brand is the most preferred Christmas ham in the country.