Philippine F&B companies told to fast-track automation

THE PHILIPPINE food and beverage (F&B) industry should quicken their automation push to boost efficiency and scale operations, according to a Malaysian software firm.

“The Philippines has a very mature food and beverage business environment,” Benny Chan, business development director at Codemax Pte Ltd., told BusinessWorld on the sidelines of Thaifex Horec Asia 2025 in Bangkok.

“The problem is that they are very much still dependent on labor and they have very much room to improve their efficiency and have a very big potential to grow,” he added.

Codemax, which provides automation and software solutions to the F&B sector, is interested in working with Philippine companies, Mr. Chan said.

He said they see the Philippines as a “huge market” and are in talks with a “Philippine representative” for their expansion plan.

He added that big companies and conglomerates in the Philippines are still very “backward,” relying on manual labor and processes, which could hinder operations.

The National Economic and Development Authority earlier said the economy could gain P2.6 trillion annually if domestic businesses adopt AI solutions.

The International Monetary Fund has cited data showing the Philippines’ share in the global outsourcing market at 15%. In 2024, it ranked 56th out of 188 countries in the Government Artificial Intelligence Readiness Index. 

“The purpose of having automation is to make things standardized, streamlined and consistent,” Mr. Chan said. “The biggest problem faced by [F&B companies] is that they have an issue maintaining the consistency across different locations, especially when they scale.” — J.V.D. Ordoñez