Gardenia Bakeries Opens Fully-automated Plant in the Philippines

Gardenia Bakeries inaugurated a fully-automated bread manufacturing facility in Pampanga, the Philippines, in addition to the recently-opened first-ever world-class bread factory in Mindanao in the first half of this year.

Gardenia president Jun Umali explained the plant inauguration’s theme “Bake to the Future 2.0”: “For the first time in Gardenia’s history in the Philippines, Gardenia Bakeries opens two huge factories with sophisticated technologies in four months. This is truly a significant milestone for Gardenia in its 21 years in the Philippine bakery industry. Gardenia is bringing the future of breadmaking [here] and we are excited to embrace the limitless possibilities in the North as we officially open a completely new and automated bread plant in Pampanga,” he further stated, according to sunstar.com.ph.

Umali also described how Gardenia applied the best technologies on its new production line.

“The whole plant is computer-controlled starting from the use of an upgraded concept in the ingredient handling and makeup systems, proofing, use of robotics in handling baking pans and a unique technology in the depanning process which promises to be gentle to the bread, completely untouched by human hands,” Umali said.

“The use of tumbler to check all four sides of the loaf bread and the presence of tornado cleaner to ensure all baking pans are clean and free of crumbs were also incorporated in the process,” he added.

The oven baking system will continue to use environment-friendly liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) like in the other Gardenia factories.

“All equipment, machines and baking technologies are sourced from the best baking equipment suppliers from all over the world including Germany, the Netherlands, Japan and the U.S.A. We also added new equipment suppliers that will enhance the whole baking process,” he said.

Umali said the new plant will be Gardenia’s second largest facility, next to its Laguna plant. “This new factory has a white loaf production line, a flavored loaf line, a bun and pandesal line and a snack toast line. With these four new production lines, the Pampanga factory will be able to produce nearly 400,000 loaves and buns every day ready for delivery to supermarkets, groceries and convenience stores,” he said.