MANILA, Philippines – Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin-based Johnsonville LLC has formed a joint venture, called Frabelle Corp., with Manila-based Frabelle Fishing Corp. The new entity will manage Johnsonville’s business in the Philippines in addition to Frabelle Fishing Corp.’s existing meat brands.

“We’re honored to be partnering with a respected company such as Frabelle to mutually accelerate our growth in this expanding region of Asia,” said Michael Stayer-Suprick, president of the company’s international division. “This joint venture helps Johnsonville expand its growth in the SE Asia market, provides a distribution and manufacturing platform to expand our product reach in Philippines, and provides both Frabelle and Johnsonville employees with opportunities to share learnings as a group of meat-industry professionals.”

The joint venture will focus on the production, distribution and sales of chilled and frozen meats including sausages, tocinos, burgers, tapas, longganisa and hot dogs in the Philippines. Johnsonville-brand sausages will be sold exclusively through Frabelle’s sales and marketing network. In addition, Frabelle Foods current brands (Premium, Yummy, Bossing, Cheezydog, Pinoy) will continue to be produced in Manila and sold through its existing sales network.

“We were seeking an industry leader we could associate with that would allow us to share technical, marketing and product-innovation resources that will improve our competitive position and help business growth,” said Fay Bernardo, Frabelle president. She and her brother, Francis Jr. Tiu-Laurel, will remain involved in the company, providing oversight and strategic leadership as board members. Johnsonville will assume day-to-day management of the venture.

Both companies will undergo training in the new operations. Some employees from Frabelle will travel to Wisconsin to train at the Johnsonville facilities, while additional Johnsonville employees will be assigned to the Manila operations.