McNester: Pulsing and still growing

McNester products vary from dried mangoes to ready to drink juices and other processed foods, among others. 

Rebecca C. Tubongbanua is not new in developing calamansi and mango-based products. She used to work as production manager of the then Guimaras Bottlers, Inc. responsible for creating new products for the market. However, she left the job due to the company’s financial woes. 

With the experience she learned from her previous job, Tubongbanua, also a chemistry graduate, ventured into processing of raw materials readily available in the community such as calamansi, mango, squash, and papaya.

With a PHP7,000 working capital, she converted her sister in law’s abandoned house as her processing area for calamansi concentrate with honey, ready to drink calamansi juice, calamansi jelly; and squash, papaya and mango pickles.

Tubongbanua found herself processing manufactured goods to support the financial needs of her family. She became her own boss. She established McNester Food Products in August 19, 2003 by selling the products to the local markets in Guimaras Island.

McNester was derived from the names of her two sons, Macmac and Ralph Nester.

The success of the company continued with the assistance from the DTI.

In joining trade fairs, Tubongbanua was able to link with new markets, suppliers of packaging materials, and has made vast improvement on labeling designs through the provision of designer/artist.

 

Her market now includes Iloilo, Manila, Cebu and other parts of the country.

She also touched base with markets for China and Korea in a private scheme.

With DTI’s intervention in marketing assistance through local and international trade fair participation, training on bookkeeping, and packaging and labeling matching with suppliers, the once makeshift processing area has now developed into a village processing area.

In 2011 alone, McNester Food Products’ sales ranged from PHP60,000.00 to PHP100,000.00 per month. Big bulk of orders came for its calamansi concentrate followed by mango concentrate, mango catsup, mango sauce, mango pickles, mango jams.

Starting with only one employee, the company has now employed 10 regular employees with five on-call workers during peak months. It has likewise invested on equipment and facilities such as stainless stock vat, steam jacketed kettle, mechanical dryer, solar tunnel dryer, and band sealers. 

It likewise expanded its production area from 20 square meters to 126 square meters.

At present, Tubongbanua opts to concentrate in the domestic market where the products are doing good.  For 2015, the company’s estimated monthly sales for one supermarket outlet in Iloilo City alone is PHP150,000.00.

The company’s gross receipt sales reached PHP1.2 million in 2010; PHP 2.4 million in 2011 and in 2012; PHP 3 million in 2013 and in 2014; and, PHP3.6 million in 2015.

McNester Food Products has now 25 different variants of juice concentrates in the market, such as mango, calamansi, pineapple-based ranging from jams, juice, concentrates, polvoron, pastilles, marmalade, ketchup, among others.

Tubongbanua foresees to acquire license to operate (LTO) with the Food and Drug Administration and branch out to other key cities and provinces such Cagayan de Oro, Iloilo and Palawan soon.