Century Pacific Food (CNPF), a major tuna producer in the Philippines, has announced that its operations have not been affected by the drastic lockdown measures imposed recently to contain the spread of the coronavirus.
As of 26 March, the Philippines reportedly had more than 700 confirmed cases of COVID-19, with more than 40 deaths.
Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte has placed Luzon, the country's largest and most-populous region – which includes Manila, the country’s capital – under lockdown from 17 March to 12 April.
South Cotabato Province, where a CNPF tuna processing plant is located, was also placed under lockdown from 21 March to 6 April to thwart the outbreak, according to a statement from the Philippines Information Agency.
“Thanks to the support of the Department of Trade and Industry and the Inter Agency Task Force, we are able to maintain a smooth flow of goods. Our factories are continually operating with enough capacity despite the use of a skeletal workforce. Thus, we currently have sufficient stock of products in our warehouses so there is no need to panic or worry that supply might run out,” CNPF President Ted Po said in a Philippines Stock Exchange filing on 23 March. He did not provide the current capacity of the company’s processing plants.
The company has sufficient raw material to maintain production it and its trade partners, distributors, and retailers are able to meet rising demand from customers during the lockdown, Po said.
CNPF is a supplier of private-label tuna products and a producer of other marine products. Even though the company might not have to suspend its processing of tuna and other species during the lockdown, the Philippines’ exports of fresh tuna are expected to be hit hard due to travel bans during the lockdown, as most of the country’s tuna is exported via air routes through Manila to other Asia markets. Most major airlines in the Philippines have canceled many of their flights into and out of the country.
