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Tuesday, October 13, 2009 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES

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Entrepreneur Of The Year Philippines 2009

Catcher in the sea

William L. Tiu Lim
President and CEO
Mega Fishing Corporation

Student and civil unrest prevailed in the Philippines just before Martial Law was declared in September 1972. Demonstrations against government were frequent, especially those organized by college students.

While all this was taking place, an Electrical Engineering junior from the University of the Philippines opted to avoid student activism and take up instead another challenge — making a living.

William L. Tiu Lim had taken an interest in the fishing industry. It dawned on him that while fish was plentiful in the Philippine waters, fishing itself has remained underdeveloped due to factors such as pollution, overfishing, lack of technology and certain national policies that countered its advancement. And while he knew what he wanted to do, it would take him a while to reach his goals.

The first step that Mr. Tiu Lim took was to borrow money to buy a fishing boat in Navotas. Mr. Tiu Lim underwent an almost decade-long struggle as he learned the ropes of the industry. Fortunately, he was able to make the right calls and from then on, Mega Fishing Corporation (MFC) continued to grow.

MFC traces its roots to Sea Gold Corp., its Navotas-based mother company. It started out as a supplier of fish to local tuna canners. Its deep sea fishing operations, which Mr. Tiu Lim relocated to Zamboanga in 1995, was an offshoot of Sea Gold Corp.

With an initial work force of 300 employees, MFC eventually expanded Sea Gold’s fishing operations in the southern part of the country developing a market niche. Seeing the need for technology to streamline his company’s operations, Mr. Tiu Lim built an ice block plant (considered the largest in Mindanao) and a cold storage unit in 1999 to support the fishing operations. These technologies facilitated Mr. Tiu Lim’s efforts to realize a vision — to provide quality fish products at reasonable prices.

From the very start, Mr. Tiu Lim knew he could make an impact on the local and global fishing industry. He invested heavily in technologies like vacuum and centrifugal pumps to transport fish quickly.

"My engineering background helped me a lot because in this business, you have to be knowledgeable about technical things — electrical energy, hydraulics, mechanics," he says. "Transferring 1,000 bucketfuls of fish into tanks used to take us one and a half hours. With our fish pump, it takes only 15 minutes."

Manually shoveling the fish into tubs raises the temperature of fish by 7-10 degrees, which compromises freshness. In contrast, MFC’s fish pumps vacuum the fish out of the ship’s nets and transfer them directly to holding tanks of chilled water. The system keeps the temperature at zero degree, keeps histamine levels low and prevents bruising. This innovation resulted in longer shelf life for fish products and more efficient operations for MFC.

To further enhance its operations, MFC has its own pier and dry-docking and repair facilities. It has been operating a fleet of fishing vessels for over 30 years in the vicinity of excellent fishing grounds in southern Philippines. Mr. Tiu Lim’s 55 vessels are fully equipped with sonar and fish finders which aid the company in forecasting the frequency of fish supply.

While Mr. Tiu Lim was successful as a fish supplier, he decided to branch out into canning as well. This came about when cartels among local canners set high prices in 2000. He found this unfair and it spurred him to create his own canning company — Ayala Seafoods Corporation — which produces the Mega Sardines brand.

Mr. Tiu Lim is particularly proud that Mega Sardines is a product of a high-quality catching-to-canning process.

"I believe we come up with better products because we are one step ahead of the others; right from the catching, the fish are preserved well," Mr. Tiu Lim says. "We have machines that automatically cut the fish so you have very little human contact. Thus, we have the freshest fish, the best product."

With both the fishing grounds and canning plant in Zamboanga, MFC is able to can the fish within 12 hours after the catch. The process is able to preserve nutrients and Omega 3 oil, naturally present in sardines and which lowers cholesterol levels.

In line with his objective to produce cost-efficient products, Mr. Tiu Lim has also begun introducing novel product ideas such as the sardines in pouches. When flip-top cans became too expensive, he thought of using nylon-lined tear-open pouches, which are less expensive to produce than cans. Sardines in pouches have been well received domestically and abroad. MFC supplies sardines to South America, where it is mostly sold to the army for combat ration. A two-kilo pouch is also being developed for clients in the food services industry.

Mr. Tiu Lim acknowledges that with such a high demand for sardines, a cheap yet nutritious food source, there are bound to be numerous competitors contending for market share. However, he is confident that MFC stands out because of its commitment to quality. The company’s products are certified Halal and have received certifications from the European Union (EU), the International HACCP Alliance and the USFDA. MFC is one of the 10 companies in the Philippines chosen by the EU for systems alignment. It is also due to receive its ISO 22000 certification this month. Mega Sardines has been recognized as an outstanding sardines brand by consumer awards such as the Parangal sa Pamilyang Pilpino (Award for the Filipino Family), Buyer’s Choice Award, National Consumer’s Award and Shopper’s Award.

MFC continues to supply 80% of the raw materials of Metro Manila- and Zamboanga-based canning companies, as well as the fresh fish requirements of Mindanao’s markets. The company exports to 26 countries, including the US, Canada and Japan. MFC’s goal now is to increase brand popularity, introduce new products (such as ginger tea), and market its products more aggressively both locally and overseas. Mr. Tiu Lim believes that this is an attainable goal; as MFC continuously improves its methods, it will produce globally competitive products.

From a single fishing boat in Navotas to a modern fleet in Mindanao, William Tiu Lim has successfully steered through the Philippine fishing industry in his quest to uplift it. He succinctly captures the reason behind his achievement with this simple piece of advice to other entrepreneurs: Focus on what you are doing until the goal is achieved.

Sponsors of Entrepreneur Of The Year Philippines 2009 are SAP Philippines, William J. Shaw Foundation, Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation, and Universal Motors Corporation. The official airline is KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, operating on behalf of the Air-France KLM Group in the Philippines. Media sponsors are BusinessWorld and the ABS-CBN News Channel.

The winners of the Entrepreneur Of The Year Philippines 2009 will be announced on October 15, 2009 in an awards banquet at the Makati Shangri-La Hotel. The Entrepreneur Of The Year Philippines will represent the country in the World Entrepreneur Of The Year 2010 in Monte Carlo, Monaco in June 2010. The Entrepreneur Of The Year is produced globally by Ernst & Young.

The Entrepreneur Of The Year Philippines 2009 has concluded its search for the country’s most successful and inspiring entrepreneurs. It is a program of the SGV Foundation, Inc. with the participation of the Department of Trade and Industry, Ateneo Graduate School of Business, Development Bank of the Philippines, Philippine Business for Social Progress, Philippine Stock Exchange and the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship. In the following days, BusinessWorld will feature each of the finalists.

News Articles 2009

Mega Fishing -- the very first to introduce the fish vacuum in the Philippines 6/08

Fish that appeals to all seasons and reasons 6/07

Mega Sardines to increase export volume by 30 percent 2/08

Mega Sardines Press Conference with Ceasar Montano 2009

Cesar's healthy heart

Cesar loves his heart

Mike Enriquez's tour of Zamboanga's pride

CESAR AS GOVERNOR AND SARDINE ENDORSER

Cesar Montano eyes Bohol governor's seat

Cesar Montano feels sorry for good friend Willie Revillame

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