Pampanga's Best

Forty years in the industry makes them an institution. Yet,  Pampanga’s Best isn’t showing signs of slowing down. Business is thriving and products are still selling like hotcakes! But don’t expect to get the usual business formula when inquiring about their secret. Their answer is simple (or is it?): “stick to God’s will”. They did and they reaped the sweetest rewards.

Business with a cause Most of us Filipinos grew up having this famous brand of tocino, longaniza, tapa and other processed meats for breakfast in the last forty years. The unassuming Pampanga’s Best or P-Best is one of the most flourishing family-owned enterprises in the country today. Presently, they offer more than 30 product varieties, with thousands of dealers in the country and in the Middle East. All products are processed in a 9-hectare top-notch plant facility in Pampanga. Their story - from humble beginnings, growth to success - are enough to fill up these pages, but see, there’s more to this multi-million company than meets the eye! At the very core is the serious commitment to give back and help those in need, not only in Christmas but the whole year through.

Teacher turned businesswoman Mrs. Lolita O. Hizon or Apong Lolet to her fellow Kapampangans is the woman behind the famed tocino. A devout and spiritual person, she gives God full credit for their success. “Weareonlyinstruments.WithoutHim,wearenotcapableof doing the impossible,” she muses. Her face lights up whenever she speaks of her Creator. Even she is overwhelmed with the magnitude of their blessings. Back in the 1970’s, Mrs. Hizon started as an elementary school teacher. Her husband Jun Hizon frequently travelled for his trucking and gasoline business, which caused her to worry. “At that time, every week ako nagcon-confess kasi what happens is pag malayo ang asawa ko, I sit down on my table in the classroom, ask my students to do some seatwork and I think of him. I tell God, forgive me for cheating on my employer and that went on for some time until I changed my prayer. I told Him, please give me a job where I am deserving of my salary. And He gave me this,” she recalls with laughter. The first 5 kilos of pork that she processed was to help a neighbor who failed to sell the produce by day’s end. “I asked for her five kilos and I processed it into tocino, which I learned from my mother. I gave it to her again the next day. She sold it easily.” From there, an initial capital of P3,000 grew the business. “I pawned my ring for the amount. I started making tocino everyday and I was praying to God that the orders will double the next day.” Like one answered prayer after another, the numbers continued to double. Soon enough, she and her husband were inseparable in what became a 20-hour-a-day job. Her twelve children, eight of whom are boys, naturally slipped into their respective roles in running the business. Today the company processes not kilos but tons of meat a day. Pampanga’s Best provides livelihood to about a thousand employees, all of which are treated like family. P-Best helps their employees’ families with medical needs, even assistance in times of death.

Blessings that go around “To keep the blessings working, a blessed person has to become a blessing to others.” This quote pretty much explains the phenomenon that is Pampanga’s Best. In 1991 when Pampanga was badly hit by the Pinatubo eruption, with ash flows covering and devastating several towns, Apong Lolet was among the first people to rebuild and start anew. “We owned a four-hectare lot in Cabalantian that got buried in lahar. So we decided to build 100 houses for families who couldn’t afford it.” Lives were changed and since then, they continued to reach out to those in need. They named the place Ing Bayung Cabalantian, which means “the new village”.

Not all families immediately moved in since there was no school. But the problem was quickly addressed. “We had one built for the community. This is about what God can do if he dwells in you, it’s not to brag,” explains Apong Lolet.

Different from the rest Apong Lolet still fancies building houses (big and small ones), but lately, a new calling keeps her busy. “When I was younger I had a recurring dream that I was building houses. I consulted a priest who told me that I would be governing people. How can I govern people?” she recalled. The answer came six years ago when homeowners elected to form a foundation. The name Ing Bayung Cabalantian was shortened to IBACA, which took on its own meaning of being different from the rest. “Whatever we do for members, we do it for free,” she emphasized. The foundation has about a thousand members who attend regular weekend meetings to study the Bible led by Apong Lolet. Each meeting is filled with singing, sharing, and praying. “When we sing, the songs are very meaningful. You will be inspired and really experience the presence of God,” she says, her words heartfelt. As the spirituality of the members is nurtured, so are their physical needs. With the help of Pampanga’s Best, members of the community receive five kilos of rice at no cost. Apong Lolet also provides monthly allowances to senior citizens and core volunteers of the foundation. P-Best also helps with the medical expenses of sick members and gives opportunities to those who aspire to improve their lives. “We give them employment, things to do, or we give them capital. If they go into business we tell them to do it honestly.” The benefits of members are very enticing but Apong Lolet says it takes serious commitment to be part of the foundation. “If you come for the rice and material benefits, don’t come anymore because that is not our objective. In this group there is no hypocrisy, no commerce, and no materialism. I pray a lot for the people and the members so when they come and they are in need, we give them.”

A Merry Christmas Her current project — the construction of a glass church where her flock can meet — will soon be realized. But this Christmas, Apong Lolet can only wish that more people would be infected with generosity and a strong devotion to God. “There is nothing to worry about having something to give away. It may be unbelievable to other people but that is the reason why we are ‘IBACA’ (different).” Pampanga’s Best employees and members of her flock, meanwhile, are assured of receiving more blessings and that includes sweet gifts from the Pampanga’s Best kitchen. The Hizon family has already gone beyond the definition of Corporate Social Responsibility. It’s not just part of their business, because they made it their business to help.