DIPOLOG CITY - KRAM’s Food Products, a peanut butter processing SME located at Padre Ramon Extension, Estaka, Dipolog City,
received assistance from the Department
of Science and Technology - Small Enterprise Technology Upgrading Program
(DOST-SETUP) for the upgrading of peanut butter processing facility. The innovation system support
assistance amounted to One Hundred Twenty Thousand Pesos (P120,000.00).
Low-production existing equipment
prompted the firm to avail of DOST-IX’s support. Through the project, the firm is set to acquire
two (2) units of peanut grinder, two (2) units of stainless steel table, peanut
roaster, and biomass stove. DOST IX also conducted trainings on Good Manufacturing
Practices (GMP) and Basic Sanitation and Hygiene to the company’s workforce.
With these interventions,
the firm is expected to produce 30 %
more than the current production, which will result to 1,008 more peanut butter
jars a year; increase sales by 30 %; generate additional employment; improve quality
of products through adherence to good manufacturing practices (GMP); and
acquire License to Operate from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Krams’s
Peanut Butter is made from roasted peanuts, grilled and mixed with sugar, salt
and butter. The product is consumed
mainly as a sandwich spread and an ingredient in making fresh lumpia and kare-kare
among others. The firm currently
distributes its products in the cities of Dipolog and Dapitan and in the
municipality of Manukan. As soon as the firm gets FDA license, it plans to
expand its market to major grocery stores in the province.
SETUP, a flagship program of DOST, is a
nationwide strategy to encourage and assist micro, small and medium enterprises
(MSMEs) in implementing technological innovations and improvements in their
operations to boost productivity and competitiveness. (DOST IX PR/PIA9/ALT)