The Jollibee Group Headquarters in Manila is visited by the Agriculture Minister and Ambassador of Canada

The Canadian Minister for Agriculture and Agri-Food Lawrence MacAulay, the Canadian Ambassador to the Philippines David Hartman, and other important Canadian government and business representatives were recently hosted at the Pasig City, Philippines, headquarters of the Jollibee Group, which is led by President and Chief Executive Officer Ernesto Tanmantiong.

In honor of the 75th anniversary of Philippine-Canadian relations, Minister MacAulay’s visit is a part of Canada’s efforts to deepen relations with the Philippines and look into potential areas of cooperation.

“It is a privilege to host The Honorable Minister MacAulay, His Excellency Ambassador Hartman, and the Canadian delegation to the Jollibee Group,” shared Ernesto Tanmantiong, Chief Executive Officer of the Jollibee Group. “This comes at an opportune time as we recently opened our 100^th Jollibee store in North America, right in Canada’s British Columbia. We thank the Canadian people for welcoming us since day one of our first store opening. Their warm and ever-increasing patronage gives us more joy to expand in Canada and North America, which is a key pillar of our global expansion.”

“During my visit to the Philippines and Malaysia, I had the pleasure of meeting with a number of food companies that source our world-class Canadian agricultural products, including the wonderful folks at Jollibee. With the opening of our first-ever Indo-Pacific Agriculture and Agri-Food Office, we are cementing our presence in the region for years to come and boosting trade and cooperation on both sides of the Pacific,” said Lawrence MacAulay, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food.

During the meeting, Minister MacAulay underscored Canada’s commitment to helping build resilient, sustainable supply chains in the region as part of its Indo-Pacific Agriculture strategy.

Alongside Minister MacAulay and Ambassador Hartman were the Honorable Kevin Lamoureux, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the House of Commons; Paul MacKinnon, President of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency; and other key representatives from Canada’s agriculture and agri-food industry. Mr. Tanmantiong was joined by William Tan Untiong, Chief Business Support Officer; Joseph Tanbuntiong, Jollibee Group Chief Business Officer; David Beal, Global Chief Marketing Officer; Ferns Yu, President of Jollibee Philippines; and other representatives from Jollibee brand and Jollibee Group procurement.

To cap off the visit, the Canadian delegation made a brief stop at Jollibee’s 1000^th Philippine store at Bonifacio Global City in Taguig. They were warmly treated to a Jolly Kids Party, which, for many members of the delegation, also served as their very first taste of Jollibee’s bestsellers such as Chickenjoy fried chicken and Jolly Spaghetti.

Jollibee’s Presence in Canada

Jollibee opened its first store in Canada in Winnipeg in 2016, and currently has 28 stores across the provinces of Ontario, Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and British Columbia.

The 100th Jollibee location in North America is located in Canada as well; it debuted in Surrey, British Columbia, in January of last year. Huge lines formed hours in advance to sample their favorite Jollibee dishes, a sign of the company’s solid equity and mouthwatering menu. The lengthy line brought back memories of the first Canada store opening in Winnipeg, where customers had to wait in bitter cold and lots of snow.

According to recent rankings by reputable independent brand valuation and strategy firm Brand Finance, Jollibee is the fifth strongest brand globally and the second fastest-growing restaurant brand.

To learn more about Jollibee Group, visit www.jollibeegroup.com