Friday, 25 June 2010 00:00 [ manilatimes.net ]
Concrete Aggregates Corp. (CAC) said it would venture into the real estate business with the development of an idle property in Batangas into a leisure farm. During its stockholders’ meeting, Noel Rapadas, CAC general manager, told reporters that the company will invest P100 million to develop a 10-hectare property in Santo Tomas, Batangas.
“In 2011, when the revenues come from the leisure farm, it should bring up [the company’s] revenues to P100 million levels,” Rapadas said.
To optimize this business venture, CAC would tap the services of a farm school and an agricultural products distributor to provide linkage between farmers and their market.
The school system under this business model would provide free education for 30 to 40 students who would earn a two-year vocational certificate in agriculture.
Lot owners will have 75 percent of their land tended by farm school students, growing high value crops or greenhouse vegetables. The agricultural distributor would be in charge of repackaging, shipping, and introducing the produce to markets.
Rapadas said CAC is still talking to prospective distributors.
“This is what sets our business model apart from most leisure farms: our provision of both linkages to the market and technical education,” he said.
The leisure farm project is part of CAC’s plan to cash in on its idle properties.
A unit of Ortigas & Co. Ltd. Partnership, CAC shares were last traded on May 13 at P38 each.
KRISTA ANGELA M. MONTEALEGRE
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