Cebuano capitalists offer Pinoy fave dishes in cans

CEBU, Philippines —  Cebuano capitalists, whose tourism businesses took a slow motion due to the pandemic, established a boutique manufacturing and canning facility called Plantation Prime, providing canned Filipino favorites here and abroad.

Plantation Prime is a boutique manufacturer and canning facility of Filipino comfort food as embodied by its flagship product, Beef Shank Kare-Kare (beef stew in peanut sauce).

In a virtual press briefing, Plantation Prime co-owner Brian Noel, who is also a restaurateur, said that while its initial canned products are now available in major supermarkets around the country, the company is currently working on regulatory requirements for exports.

Noel said the company is also reaching out to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to help them connect with overseas importers to accelerate their export plans.

Operating under MB2 Food Products Inc., the company was born at the height of the pandemic lockdown in 2020. Aside from Noel, the company is also co-owned by hotelier Manny Gonzalez and Hannibal Boiser.

 The brand began as an idea in 2019 to produce ready-to-eat and long lasting canned Filipino food that are tedious to prepare, initially targeting overseas Filipinos with limited time to prepare meals, and limited choices for ready-to-eat comfort food, a living situation the three owners shared at some point in their lives.

In 2020, the company started producing canned beef shank kare-kare and longganiza (sausage) from the recipes of Plantation Bay Resort and Spa, owned by one of the incorporators. In 2021, the product line quickly expanded to include Bicol Express (pork stew in coconut milk with chili) and soon chili con carne and Filipino spaghetti meat sauce in the next few months pending FDA approval.

The company maintains a 200 sqm processing plant on Mactan Island initially producing at least 300 canned goods a day.

With the aim to make these classic dishes readily available to the working consumer, the company has effectively brought 5-star dining into the comforts of home, added Noel.

Plantation Prime is currently available in all branches of Metro Gaisano Supermarkets, The Marketplace, Robinsons Supermarket, and Fooda Savers Mart in Cebu. The brand can also be found in all Metro Supermarkets in Luzon and the rest of the Visayas, Alturas Supermarket in Bohol and select groceries in Mindanao.