Post by alvic on Aug 2, 2006 16:23:52 GMT 8
BUTUAN CITY- “You really think Filipinos are that dumb?”
This was Rory Ong Yiu’s candid reply to a group of foreign capitalists who backed out of a planned investment in Yiu’s banana chip business. Ong Yiu had hoped the businessmen would infuse much-needed capital to his young venture, but a year after, the group admitted that they had no money to help him.
Ong Yiu was lost. He had previous success in wood manufacturing and tuna fishing, but knew nothing about banana processing. He engaged the services of a reputed expert in banana chips, only to find out that the person’s only know-how was in packaging. His first fifteen deliveries to Germany, meanwhile, were all rejected. Worse, someone from a local agency tasked to help entrepreneurs told him in 1986 that banana chips production was a “sunset industry.”
“It was a nice experience,” Ong Yiu deadpans.
Things only started to get well for Ong Yiu after he discovered a vital process- the second frying of the chips, which wards off an unpleasant taste on the products. “We fortunately found out the second frying after almost three months of no earnings,” Yiu recalls.
From then on, his banana chips production has become the biggest in the country, and the cornerstone of his Celebes Group of Companies, one of Mindanao’s most progressive. With four companies under his control - Celebes Coconut Corporation, Celebes Oil Mill, Incorporated, Celebes Agricultural Corporation (CAC) and Royce Foods Corporation (RFC)- Ong Yiu has earned a reputation as a shrewd, inventive entrepreneur.
Entrepreneurial Spirit
Succeeding in business, it seemed, is Ong Yiu’s destiny. While others of his age chased girls, Ong Yiu chased his dreams. “When I finished high school, I wanted to stop and not to go to college. I wanted to have my own business, ” Ong Yiu shares. He imagined having a chopstick manufacturing company as a teen, and realized this almost a decade later. “We had so much raw materials here. People were using these as firewood, they were throwing it away, but there was a large market for that abroad,” Ong Yiu said.
In 1981, Ong Yiu successfully put up a wood manufacturing company, sourcing timber from its own forest concession in this city. The company produced chopsticks, and crates for soda products, among others. Two years later he diversified into deep-sea tuna fishing, taking advantage of the island’s abundant natural wealth. In 1986, he started his banana chips production, then an oil mill in 1992 and finally a desiccated coconut production in 2000.
Ong Yiu saw, grabbed and turned the most out of every opportunity. While it was initially established to serve the requirements of its banana chips production, his coconut oil milling found its way to produce 3,000 tons for export worldwide. His desiccated oil production that initially yielded 60 by 20 feet containers a month in 2000 now exports 180 containers in 29 countries.
And with his numerous clients across the globe, Ong Yiu found a ready market for his desiccated coconut and tropical fruits, used in confectionaries, chocolate fillings and toppings, baked macaroons, candies and coconut-sprinkled cereals.
Environmental Awareness
Ong Yiu has also invested heavily on different environmental practices through the help of DBP-Butuan, which has been its partner in various expansion and environmental efforts since 1992. To date, Celebes is the only Mindanao manufacturer that boasts of waste water treatment facilities.
“We’re in for the long term,” Ong Yiu tells, “ that’s why we invested in the waste water treatment even if it accounts for about 25% of the cost of the plant. It is one of the reasons why our clients are buying from us.”
The corporation has also complied with various product standards and certification. Celebes Agricultural Corporation has passed the stringent Quality Standard Tests (QST), which demands strict monitoring and compliance to high food production standards, including the Hazard Analysis of Critical Control Points (HACCAP). Celebes has also obtained organic certification from a leading European certification organization for its coconut products.
Celebes’ continued success has reaped dividends not just for the Caraga region, but for Mindanao and Visayas as well. Currently, there are some 10,000 employees belonging to the corporation. Some 2,000 of them come from the Caraga region, while the rest are scattered in various cities in the south.
His success, Ong Yiu says, is a result of his inventiveness. He has made full use of the wealth of resources in his area. His travels abroad have also given him ideas on how to expand his craft.
“We have so many things to export here. There are a lot of opportunities in Mindanao. I have just been resourceful all these years,” Ong Yiu maintains. This attitude, coupled with his diligent nature- Ong Yiu admits to working tirelessly 18 hours a day- has made him a prime mover of countryside development in Mindanao.
This was Rory Ong Yiu’s candid reply to a group of foreign capitalists who backed out of a planned investment in Yiu’s banana chip business. Ong Yiu had hoped the businessmen would infuse much-needed capital to his young venture, but a year after, the group admitted that they had no money to help him.
Ong Yiu was lost. He had previous success in wood manufacturing and tuna fishing, but knew nothing about banana processing. He engaged the services of a reputed expert in banana chips, only to find out that the person’s only know-how was in packaging. His first fifteen deliveries to Germany, meanwhile, were all rejected. Worse, someone from a local agency tasked to help entrepreneurs told him in 1986 that banana chips production was a “sunset industry.”
“It was a nice experience,” Ong Yiu deadpans.
Things only started to get well for Ong Yiu after he discovered a vital process- the second frying of the chips, which wards off an unpleasant taste on the products. “We fortunately found out the second frying after almost three months of no earnings,” Yiu recalls.
From then on, his banana chips production has become the biggest in the country, and the cornerstone of his Celebes Group of Companies, one of Mindanao’s most progressive. With four companies under his control - Celebes Coconut Corporation, Celebes Oil Mill, Incorporated, Celebes Agricultural Corporation (CAC) and Royce Foods Corporation (RFC)- Ong Yiu has earned a reputation as a shrewd, inventive entrepreneur.
Entrepreneurial Spirit
Succeeding in business, it seemed, is Ong Yiu’s destiny. While others of his age chased girls, Ong Yiu chased his dreams. “When I finished high school, I wanted to stop and not to go to college. I wanted to have my own business, ” Ong Yiu shares. He imagined having a chopstick manufacturing company as a teen, and realized this almost a decade later. “We had so much raw materials here. People were using these as firewood, they were throwing it away, but there was a large market for that abroad,” Ong Yiu said.
In 1981, Ong Yiu successfully put up a wood manufacturing company, sourcing timber from its own forest concession in this city. The company produced chopsticks, and crates for soda products, among others. Two years later he diversified into deep-sea tuna fishing, taking advantage of the island’s abundant natural wealth. In 1986, he started his banana chips production, then an oil mill in 1992 and finally a desiccated coconut production in 2000.
Ong Yiu saw, grabbed and turned the most out of every opportunity. While it was initially established to serve the requirements of its banana chips production, his coconut oil milling found its way to produce 3,000 tons for export worldwide. His desiccated oil production that initially yielded 60 by 20 feet containers a month in 2000 now exports 180 containers in 29 countries.
And with his numerous clients across the globe, Ong Yiu found a ready market for his desiccated coconut and tropical fruits, used in confectionaries, chocolate fillings and toppings, baked macaroons, candies and coconut-sprinkled cereals.
Environmental Awareness
Ong Yiu has also invested heavily on different environmental practices through the help of DBP-Butuan, which has been its partner in various expansion and environmental efforts since 1992. To date, Celebes is the only Mindanao manufacturer that boasts of waste water treatment facilities.
“We’re in for the long term,” Ong Yiu tells, “ that’s why we invested in the waste water treatment even if it accounts for about 25% of the cost of the plant. It is one of the reasons why our clients are buying from us.”
The corporation has also complied with various product standards and certification. Celebes Agricultural Corporation has passed the stringent Quality Standard Tests (QST), which demands strict monitoring and compliance to high food production standards, including the Hazard Analysis of Critical Control Points (HACCAP). Celebes has also obtained organic certification from a leading European certification organization for its coconut products.
Celebes’ continued success has reaped dividends not just for the Caraga region, but for Mindanao and Visayas as well. Currently, there are some 10,000 employees belonging to the corporation. Some 2,000 of them come from the Caraga region, while the rest are scattered in various cities in the south.
His success, Ong Yiu says, is a result of his inventiveness. He has made full use of the wealth of resources in his area. His travels abroad have also given him ideas on how to expand his craft.
“We have so many things to export here. There are a lot of opportunities in Mindanao. I have just been resourceful all these years,” Ong Yiu maintains. This attitude, coupled with his diligent nature- Ong Yiu admits to working tirelessly 18 hours a day- has made him a prime mover of countryside development in Mindanao.