Food ingredients and plastics manufacturer D&L Industries Inc. said Wednesday it booked a record P3.3-billion net income in 2022, up 26 percent from a year ago, driven by strong consumer spending and resilient growth in exports.
D&L president and chief executive Alvin Lao said in a news briefing the company managed to achieve record profits for the period despite a confluence of volatile raw material prices, higher inflation and interest rates, a weak peso and an Omicron surge early in the year.
Sales also climbed 41 percent in 2022 to P43.5 billion from P30.85 billion in 2021.
Lao said the company’s biggest business segments—food ingredients, oleochemicals and other specialty chemicals and specialty plastics—all booked positive earnings growth for the year.
“Our record earnings this year demonstrated the resilience that we have built over the years through the various crises that we have gone through,” Lao said
“While risk remains in the form of elevated inflation, threat of a US recession and a global banking turmoil, we are optimistic and focused on our long-term structural growth story,” he said.
Lao said D&L’s export business proved to be resilient, growing 33 percent in 2022 driven by the higher export market penetration and higher demand for sustainable, organic and natural coconut oil-based raw materials used in various health, personal and home care products.
He said demand was shifting back to high-market specialty products as overall economic conditions improved.
Meanwhile, Lao said the company was on track to opening a new manufacturing facility in Batangas by the middle of 2023.
“This plant will be transformational for us from a sustainable growth perspective. It will add the capabilities that will allow us to increase our relevance in the overall production chain and service new and bigger customers globally,” Lao said.