Mighty Corp helped out farmers to emerge its production boost

FARMERS in Pangasinan and the Ilocos provinces have expressed relief that their tobacco leaves will have a sure market this year.
Expressing relief was Mario Cabasal, president of the National Federation of Tobacco Growers and Cooperatives (NFTGC) after learning that Mighty Corp has made commitments to initially buy at least 10 million kilograms of tobacco leaves at an average price of P70 per kilo and buy all the excess tobacco leaves that farmers could not sell to other buyers.
 “We limited to minimum areas fields planted to tobacco last year in anticipation of depressed demand due to the scheduled implementation of the sin tax,” Cabasal said. “good thing, some farmers were able  to sell part of their low-grade harvests to Mighty Corporation in 2013,” he pointed out.
“Now that we are assured of an alternative market, besides other tobacco companies, our members will again be inspired to devote larger areas to the cultivation of Ilocandia’s most important cash crop,” he said.
Fearing that tobacco prices and demand for the yellow leaf would dive as a result of the new excise tax law on cigarettes, many farmers in the Ilocos Region shifted to planting yellow corn, the only other cash crop that thrives in dry land where rainfall is scarce during the summer months. Profits from corn are, however, lower than tobacco.
Planting of the golden leaf started last month and selling the dry leaf often peaks just before the Holy Week.
“With Mighty’s assurance that the company will buy all the unsold tobacco harvested by farmers, we can also be sure that unlike in the past, prices will stay high even after the holiday season. Price cut downs on harvests after the Holy Week was an old practice of middlemen from Ilocos Norte to Pangasinan.

Mighty Corp unveiled King and Chelsea brand

Expect competition in the local tobacco industry to heat up.

Mighty Corp., the oldest Filipino-owned tobacco company, has launched its premium brands King and Chelsea in a bid to firm up its position as the country’s second-biggest cigarette manufacturer.

“Our decision to enter the premium brand segment is part of the company’s thrust to reposition our brands and expand our reach into all segments of the market,” Oscar P. Barrientos, Mighty executive vice president, said.

“We hope to extend the reach of Mighty Corp. and strengthen our position as the top Filipino-owned tobacco company in the Philippines,” Barrientos added.

He said that both brands are premium in terms of smoke character. “But from the packaging and cigarette design, King is more traditional while Chelsea radiates unconventionality,” he explained.

The two premium brands are blended with the finest tobacco grades to give off a balanced taste and aroma. Both come in full flavor king size, lights king size and menthol 100s or a total of six different variants.

“One of our advantages is the smell, flavor and aromatic taste of our cigarettes that are also exceptionally smooth, mellow and attractively packaged,” Barrientos, a retired RTC judge, said.

Mighty’s premium brands will be categorized in the highest tax bracket for cigarettes.

“Our decision to expand our product lines is just part of our vision to become a major player in the market and show what a Filipino company can do,” Barrientos said.

The company was established in 1945 by businessman Wong Chu King with a small factory in Manila producing native cigarettes known as “Matamis.”

The company was renamed Mighty Corp. in 1985 and bought the trademarks of Alhambra Industries in 1993. It now operates a nine-hectare fully integrated manufacturing and processing plant in Malolos, Bulacan.

Mighty Corp. was able to build up its market share through an aggressive marketing push and heavy investments in research, development and production.

Mighty Corp made giant leap over their excise tax payment

The excise tax paid by a cigarette company made a quantum leap from P300 million in 2012 to at least P8 billion for the whole year of 2013, according to data from the Bureau of Internal Revenue.  

This was announced by  Oscar Barrientos, executive vice president of Mighty Corp., who added that “the tax we paid for the year 2013 just past reflects the jump in our market share and our fair share in the increased taxes on “sin” products.

Barrientos, a retired  regional trial court judge, said the facts should put to rest false accusations that Mighty Corporation has not been paying its correct taxes.

He further pointed out that despite charges in the news media and by some members of Congress against the company, no case has been filed in court.

In fact, Barrientos pointed out, the BIR and the Bureau of Customs have cleared his company of any tax deficiency until February of this year.

The company paid P300 million in 2012, the former judge explained, when its share of the local market of cigarette was a measly three percent. This share shot up since the government put into effect Republic Act 10352, otherwise known as the new sin tax law.

The law has synchronized a five-year adjustment of taxes on cigarettes for it to become a uniform P30 per pack in five years covering all brands.

Records of the Bureau of Internal Revenue   had shown that excise taxes from both cigarettes and alcohol products increased by 81.5 percent despite a decline in the number of sticks sold.
Total tax take from January to November hit an all-time high of P91.6 billion from P60.4 billion in 2012.

Taxes from cigarettes represented 61.6 percent or almost two thirds of sin tax collections for 11 months.

Mighty Corp., which until the year 2012, was a minor player, pitched in more than P8 billion of the excise tax, not to mention the income tax the company will have to pay for the same year come deadline time.

Mighty Corp increased its tobacco production in Luzon

Mighty Corp (MC), one of the country’s local producers of low-priced cigarettes, yesterday announced it will buy 10 million kilograms of tobacco products worth millions of pesos from farmers in Northern Luzon and elsewhere in the country.

In an official letter of intent he sent to National Tobacco Administrator Edgardo D. Zaragoza, MC Executive Vice President Oscar P. Barrientos said it is buying tobacco from farmers 100 percent more than the five million kilograms his firm bought in 2013.

“This is to assure our tobacco farmers of our willingness to help in response to the published report of the market leader in the tobacco industry to lessen production this year,” Barrientos, a retired regional trial court judge, said.

The letter of intent, in effect, debunked critics’ allegations that MC has been importing raw materials from foreign countries at low prices and therefore it is no longer buying tobacco from local farmers.

Barrientos said their critics have been resorting to a disinformation campaign using convoluted data in an effort to undermine Mighty’s tremendous increase of its market shares.

MC’s market shares surged to almost 20 percent of the low-priced cigarette brands last year from three percent the previous year, resulting to the payment P8.2 billion in excise taxes.

According to Barrientos, their market shares shot up after the government effectively implemented Republic Act 10352, otherwise known as the Sin Tax Law that leveled the playing field in the multibillion-peso tobacco industry which was controlled by Philip Morris and Fortune Tobacco. The new law that took 14 years to pass and certified as urgent by President Aquino III caused a tremendous migration of smokers from the expensive premium and sub-premium brands to low-priced cigarettes.

It also resulted to some smokers, because of economic reason, to simply quit the vice and thus validated health authorities estimate that the sin tax law would result to the decrease of the number of smokers in the country.

Before the end of 2013, total tax collection by the BIR hit an all time increase of P91.6 billion from P60.4 billion in 2012. Taxes from cigarettes represented 61.6 percent or almost two thirds of all sin tax collection for 11 months of 2013.

Mighty Corp., then a minor player with a measly three percent of the market share with only P500 million in excise tax payments before the sin tax law took effect in 2012, contributed P8.2 billion in tax payments in 2013, discrediting its critics that it had allegedly committed technical smuggling and tax evasion.

Mighty Corp, local firms employees completed its training

Thirty people, including 17 from local tobacco manufacturer Mighty Corp., have completed a proficiency-training seminar conducted by American experts on tobacco leaf utilization, leaf chemistry and leaf purchases.
The seminar, jointly conducted by MC and American Tobacco Associates (TA) Inc., also trained the participants on the US Leaf Standards Grading System for both Burley and flue-cured tobacco developed by the US tobacco industry in the early 1900s.

Bobby Wellons, tobacco training specialist from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) conducted the US Leaf Standards Seminar on Burley and flue-cured together with TA’s vice president, Hank Mozingo.


According to retired Gen. Edilberto Adan, MC president, understanding leaf tobacco grading standards provides the foundation for learning and appreciating tobacco qualities and characteristics in the Philippines.


“More specifically,” he said, “the seminars helped those directly involved in tobacco manufacturing gain a better understanding of the unique characteristics of each US tobacco grade and which grades are more suitable for specific blend needs.”     


While MC provided all the necessary on-site assistance and essentials, the TA group supplied all tobacco samples and training materials. 


The short but comprehensive course was conducted at the new MC facility (Pavilion) located inside the factory grounds.  


Aside from the MC participants, the others came from the National Tobacco Administration, Universal Leaf Philippines, Trans-Manila Inc., Continental Leaf, Prudence and WCD. 


The first two days of the seminar focused on the Burley tobacco grades and characteristics. The remaining three days covered flue-cured. 


At the end of the training course, each participant received a certification from USDA for completing the program.


Overall, the tobacco grading seminar has successfully served its purpose, providing participants with a deeper and a more extensive knowledge on the different sectors of the tobacco industry.

Mighty Corp intended to buy tobacco products to Northern Luzon farmers

Mighty Corp (MC), one of the country’s local producers of low-priced cigarettes, yesterday announced it will buy 10 million kilograms of tobacco products worth millions of pesos from farmers in Northern Luzon and elsewhere in the country.

In an official letter of intent he sent to National Tobacco Administrator Edgardo D. Zaragoza, MC Executive Vice President Oscar P. Barrientos said it is buying tobacco from farmers 100 percent more than the five million kilograms his firm bought in 2013.

“This is to assure our tobacco farmers of our willingness to help in response to the published report of the market leader in the tobacco industry to lessen production this year,” Barrientos, a retired regional trial court judge, said.

The letter of intent, in effect, debunked critics’ allegations that MC has been importing raw materials from foreign countries at low prices and therefore it is no longer buying tobacco from local farmers.

Barrientos said their critics have been resorting to a disinformation campaign using convoluted data in an effort to undermine Mighty’s tremendous increase of its market shares.

MC’s market shares surged to almost 20 percent of the low-priced cigarette brands last year from three percent the previous year, resulting to the payment P8.2 billion in excise taxes.

According to Barrientos, their market shares shot up after the government effectively implemented Republic Act 10352, otherwise known as the Sin Tax Law that leveled the playing field in the multibillion-peso tobacco industry which was controlled by Philip Morris and Fortune Tobacco. The new law that took 14 years to pass and certified as urgent by President Aquino III caused a tremendous migration of smokers from the expensive premium and sub-premium brands to low-priced cigarettes.

It also resulted to some smokers, because of economic reason, to simply quit the vice and thus validated health authorities estimate that the sin tax law would result to the decrease of the number of smokers in the country.

Before the end of 2013, total tax collection by the BIR hit an all time increase of P91.6 billion from P60.4 billion in 2012. Taxes from cigarettes represented 61.6 percent or almost two thirds of all sin tax collection for 11 months of 2013.

Mighty Corp., then a minor player with a measly three percent of the market share with only P500 million in excise tax payments before the sin tax law took effect in 2012, contributed P8.2 billion in tax payments in 2013, discrediting its critics that it had allegedly committed technical smuggling and tax evasion.

Mighty Corp helped the farmers from their CSR program

The National Tobacco Administration (NTA) chief Edgardo Zaragoza has welcomed the assistance provided to tobacco farmers by Mighty Corp, a local cigarrete company, officials said.

“The more players dealing directly with the farmers, the better and merrier. This is a big boost to the tobacco industry,” Zaragoza said.

He said Mighty’s social outreach programs would increase the assistance provided to farmers and their families and “we hope this would encourage other cigarette industry players to do the same.”

Mighty has provided 90 diesel-fed water pumps and 16 power tillers to farmers in the provinces of Abra, Ilocs Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union, Pangasinan, Isabela and Cagyan, the country’s top producers of yellow leaf, the variety used for cigarettes. Tobacco thrives even without rainfall and irrigation systems.

Mighty said it would buy 10 million kilograms of tobacco leaves, one fifth of the industry’s total production. It has also provided 100 scholarships to high school graduate  children of  tobacco farmers.

Zaragoza said the NTA was working on the implementing rules for the excise taxes on cigarettes “to ensure that the taxes will directly benefit tobacco farmers.”

“In 2003, excise tax collection from tobacco increasaed by almost P35 billion. From P32 billion in 2012, it became P67 billion in 2013,” Zaragoza said.

The increase in excise taxes followed the enactment in December 2012 of the Sin Tax Reform Law, which took effect in January 2013 and levies higher taxes on cigarettes and liquor.