Victorias Milling Company has been prepared for the Asean Free Trade Agreement for the past five years, as well as the whole sugar industry, its president and CEO Eduardo Concepcion said as the company marked its 95th anniversary yesterday.

Concepcion said “AFTA is coming in by January 1 and if you have not been prepared for that, then it is too late to prepare already.”

For the past five years they have continued to improve on the efficiencies of their factory and they want to make sure that cost-wise, they can compete with foreign sugar, that is why they are going into diversification, he said.

Concepcion said they have big plans for the mill for the next five years and this include power and even fuel, which is ethanol.

Meanwhile, Concepcion said VMC has been operating very well for so many years in the past. So far the planters are very satisfied with their operation, that is why they continue to be the biggest producer of sugar in Negros.

Although artificial sugar was a worry before, as of now sugar, the way it is being produced, is well accepted in the market. There are also medical issues involving artificial sugar so they believe taking sugar, especially VMC sugar, is good for one’s health if taken moderately, he said.

Concepcion said “The sugar industry has been a big help to the economy of the country, and as Filipinos we should always patronize local products.”

VMC opened an exhibit at the Victorias City Hall yesterday featuring some of the facilities used by the company since it started its operation in 1919, as part of the first Kalamayan and Christmas Festival in Victorias.

It also held a “Sabor Victorias Cook-Off” where contestants were required to prepare their recipe using VMC products.

VMC corporate communication director Ann Tiongco said this is part of their participation in the first Kalamayan Festival of Victorias City and how they can be part of Mayor Francis Frederick Palanca’s plan to make the city a tourism destination in the future.

Tiongco said VMC has gone through two world wars and two to three disasters and yet they were able to preserve a lot of these items that can share history and heritage to the city, through the help of VMC section head Ma. Cecilia Alaban.*CGS

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