Goldilocks, a local food company that offers full meals, merienda choices, baked foodstuff, and pasalubong packages, will introduce its brownie mix and condiments such as atsara, sweet and sour sauce, and bagoong for the local and international market.

“We hope to expand our markets by offering new tasty products, as we are currently in the process of tapping Asian countries like Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong, and the Middle East,” said Marge Manganan, Goldilocks’ Marketing Manager for Retail Accounts. 

In 2005, Goldilocks launched its Pinoydeli ready-to-cook dishes like dinuguan, lechon paksiw, and bopis, which became an instant hit then.  Unlike canned goods, these products are packed in a flexible stand-up pouch, cooked at a very high temperature, and have no preservatives.  These ready-to-cook meals are now available in laing, beef caldereta, kare-kare, and pork meatballs.

“Consumers were fascinated to see that their favorite Goldilocks dishes are now available in a handy pack which they can bring anywhere, anytime.  They became interested in it because it has three easy-to-prepare options: it can be placed in boiling water for 5 minutes, be microwaved for 2 minutes, or be placed in hot water for 5 minutes,” explained Manganan.

Latest research shows that the ready-to-cook (RTC) market has continued to gain consumer penetration. Convenient foods with extreme portability and one-handed eating/drinking (based on a growing number of consumers who snack while driving), foodstuff that requires minimum preparation, and products that have long shelf life are now very popular, as more people become busy with their jobs and leisure.

Likewise, the demand for condiments, including dressings, dry cooking, pickled products, seasonings, table and wet cooking sauces, is fast increasing. In US alone, condiments represent the largest specialty food category at 21% of its specialty food sales.  Its retail size is projected to grow at US$ 7.2 billion this year.

Aside from these Pinoydeli products, Goldilocks’ other best-selling products are Sweet Delights Polvoron, Pik-a-Pop Popcorn, and Egg Square Crackers (galletas).

On May 18-20 at the World Trade Center, Goldilocks will join the International Food Exhibition (IFEX) Philippines in a bid to better promote its RTC food products and condiments and expand its market locally and abroad.

“Through IFEX, we were able to acquire a network of valued clients and create awareness that Goldilocks is now exporting long shelf-life products in countries such as US, Canada, UK, and Italy.  We hope to be successful again this year,” said Manganan.  To note, Goldilocks will be joining this food fair for the third time.

In order to attract more buyers in IFEX this year, Goldilocks will conduct a sampling of its Pinoydeli sauces, a baking demo for Easy Bake Fudgie Brownie Mix, and a preparation demo for its instant dishes. 

Reaching its 41^st year in business, Goldilocks takes pride in achieving numerous recognitions, particularly the National Consumers Quality Award, Consumer Union of the Philippine Award, Philippines’ Most Outstanding Bakeshop, and the Most Outstanding Native Food Chain.  It has also been named a Filipino Superbrand every year since the Philippine Superbrands Council began giving local companies the honor.

Aside from Goldilocks, other big food companies like First Choice Food Corporation (manufacturer of Blueskies crackers), KSK Food Products (Boy Bawang corn snacks), Mega Fishing Corp.(Mega sardines), Monde Nissin Corp. (Luck Me instant noodles, Bingo sandwich, Eggnog cookies, etc.), and Universal Robina Corp.(C2 flavored drinks, Maxx  candy, Chippy, etc), along with 300 small and medium enterprises (SMEs), are also expected to join IFEX 2007. 

IFEX Philippines is now on its fourth year as the most significant country-sponsored event that showcases the best offerings of the local food industry.  It is organized by the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM), the export promotions agency of the Department of Trade and Industry.