Celebrating Excellence: Pilmico Recognized for Safety and Halal Compliance

Iligan City, Philippines—Pilmico Foods Corporation’s (Pilmico) Iligan operations recently marked two significant milestones in safety and product quality, reinforcing the plant’s reputation as a model of operational excellence in the food manufacturing industry.

During the World Day for Safety and Health at Work 2025 celebration in April, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Region 10 recognized Pilmico’s Feeds Iligan operations for achieving 2.6 million safe man-hours with zero lost time incidents. This major milestone reflects the team’s unwavering commitment to employee safety and well-being through proactive hazard management, continuous safety training, and strict adherence to occupational health protocols.

Adding to this achievement, the Flour Mill Division of Pilmico was recently honored by the Islamic Da’wah Council of the Philippines (IDCP) as a Halal-Compliant Company and the First Halal-Certified Flour Company in the country. This recognition, awarded during the World Halal Forum and Gala Dinner at the Makati Shangri-La, highlights the division’s commitment to inclusivity, food integrity, and Halal standards. Notably, Pilmico has proudly held its Halal-certified status from the IDCP since 2009, showcasing its long-standing dedication to meeting the highest standards of Halal compliance.

“Our commitment to operational excellence and inclusivity guides everything we do,” said Alexis Revantad, Aboitiz Foods Vice President – Iligan Site Management and Flour Operations. “These recognitions are the result of our people’s hard work, discipline, and shared belief in doing things the right way. I’m proud of what our teams have achieved, and even more excited for what we can accomplish together moving forward.”

These recognitions are a testament to one of Aboitiz Foods’ core attributes: Building Expertise for Quality. Quality and reliability have long been the cornerstones of our business. By leveraging our sector expertise with strong capabilities and world-class facilities, we consistently deliver excellence, whether in maintaining safe, responsible operations or in meeting the diverse needs of the customers and communities we serve.

Frequently Asked Questions:

Q1: What does 2.6 million safe man-hours with zero lost time incidents actually mean?
A lost time incident is any workplace injury or illness that causes an employee to miss scheduled work. Reaching 2.6 million man-hours without a single such incident means every person across every shift at the Iligan feeds plant completed their work without a serious injury throughout that entire period. For a manufacturing facility handling heavy machinery and industrial-scale feed production, this is a statistically significant safety record that reflects sustained, system-wide discipline rather than a single fortunate outcome.

Q2: Why does Halal certification matter beyond serving Muslim consumers?
Halal certification is fundamentally a quality and integrity framework — not solely a religious designation. The certification process requires documented traceability of ingredients, strict controls over contamination, and transparent production practices. These standards benefit all consumers by ensuring consistent food integrity. Being recognized as the first Halal-certified flour company in the Philippines by the Islamic Da’wah Council of the Philippines since 2009 signals that these standards have been maintained continuously for over fifteen years — not achieved once and forgotten.

Q3: What practices enabled the Iligan plant to achieve its safety milestone?
The safety record was built on proactive hazard identification, continuous employee safety training, and strict adherence to occupational health protocols — applied consistently across daily operations rather than in response to incidents. This proactive model is the critical distinction: waiting for accidents to trigger safety improvements is reactive and costly. Embedding hazard management into routine operations, combined with regular training that keeps safety awareness active, creates a culture where safe behavior is the default rather than an enforced exception.

Q4: What is the significance of receiving both recognitions within the same period?
Two independent government and industry bodies — DOLE Region 10 and the Islamic Da’wah Council of the Philippines — recognizing the same company within a short timeframe signals consistent operational standards across different functions and facilities. The safety recognition covers the Feeds Iligan plant; the Halal recognition covers the Flour Mill Division. Together they demonstrate that the commitment to excellence is not isolated to one team or one metric, but embedded across the organization’s manufacturing operations as a whole.

Q5: What is the broader takeaway for the Philippine food manufacturing industry?
Safety performance and food compliance standards are not competing priorities — they reinforce each other as expressions of the same underlying operational culture. Companies that invest in building genuine expertise in both areas — through sustained training, rigorous standards, and accountable leadership — earn recognition that strengthens market trust and opens access to broader customer segments. For the Philippine food industry, these recognitions demonstrate that world-class manufacturing standards are achievable domestically and serve as a benchmark for what operational excellence looks like in practice.