Carmen’s Best, the homegrown dairy darling best known for its rich, creamy ice cream, is churning out growth in all directions—now with farms and facilities stretching from Luzon to Mindanao.
With the recent acquisition of a fully operational dairy farm in Maramag, Bukidnon—home to 220 milking cows—the brand now manages one of the largest herds in the country, a move that underscores its ambition to become a national dairy force.
This southern expansion adds to its two existing dairy facilities and an ice cream plant in Laguna, giving Carmen’s Best the ability to serve fresh milk, cheese, and ice cream across all three major island groups. For a country long reliant on imported dairy, this level of localized production is no small feat.
“From the very beginning, the goal of Carmen’s Best has been simple: give Filipinos access to dairy products that are made fresh, with no substitutes, and with no shortcuts taken,” said Jovy Hernandez, president and chief executive officer of Metro Pacific Agro Ventures Inc. (MPAV) and Carmen’s Best.
Earlier this year, the company took its dairy ambitions to the 2025 Food Summit, where Hernandez engaged with agricultural leaders and the Cebu Chamber of Commerce. The message was clear: Carmen’s Best is serious about catalyzing the local dairy industry, especially in underserved markets in Visayas and Mindanao.
The brand’s nationwide retail rollout began in March 2025 via major chains such as SM Hypermarket, Puregold, and The Marketplace. Soon, Carmen’s Best will appear on hotel dessert menus, resort buffets, and even scooping stations in Cebu.
Its growing product portfolio now includes indulgent ice cream flavors like Salted Caramel and Everyone Loves Vanilla, a barista-grade milk line, and—coming soon—a locally crafted Kesong Puti.
In a country where only 1 percent of dairy demand is met domestically, Carmen’s Best is not just serving dessert—it is rewriting the playbook on how premium dairy can be made fresh, local, and proudly Filipino.
