Since its incorporation in May 1919, the Victorias Milling Company (VMC) has tremendous contribution to the economy of Victorias. According to Dr. Bernardo Villegas, in one of his Economics books, the VMC had been "fatherly" to its employees as it took care of them from birth to death. It had its won hospital, free housing for its employees that came with free water and electricity, and it had schools and a world-famous chapel within its compound. Its employees did not have to go to the 'town proper' of Victorias to purchase food and daily needs as it had its own market and grocery. It even had a small airport for planes that flew the Manila-Victorias route.
Although VMC has been mentioned in Chapters 14 and 17 (links below) in The History of Victorias City Philippines, the said mentions were very limited.
As a tribute to VMC and to the memory of its founder, Don Miguel Jose Ossorio, I am providing its historical timeline that I am quoting and paraphrasing from “Victorias – A History in Pictures”, a book of photographs and historical information published by the Victorias Milling Company. In the previous chapters about the World War II experience of the Victoriahanon, I only noted that the machinery and equipment of VMC were ruined during those years. The book, on the other hand, has more details that are worthy to share.
The history of Victorias Milling Company starts in 1916 when…
The 26-year old Miguel Jose Ossorio draws plans for a centrifugal sugar mill in Manapla, Negros Occidental. Ossorio was a businessman born in the Philippines from Spanish parents. His team includes his brother, Jesus, an electrical engineer educated in England; Norberto Capay, a mechanical and marine engineer; and Claudio R. de Luzuriaga, Sr., a lawyer.
1916: The construction of a 300-ton per day sugar mill begins.
1917: In December 1917, the North Negros Sugar Company, or NONSUCO, is established with Francis Greenfield, a sugar expert from Hawaii as its manager.
1918: NONSUCO produces 43,752 piculs of raw sugar on its first year. (A picul is equivalent to 60 kilograms and is an Asian unit to measure weight. It is originally a Javanese term that translates to "to carry on a shoulder", meaning whatever a man can carry on his shoulder with a pole. Picture a man with a pole resting on his shoulder with two vats hanging on opposite ends - that is 'pikul'. The term was then adopted by Portuguese and Spanish colonizers.)
1918: A drydock is completed in Balolan, Manapla.
1918: M. J. Ossorio starts his plans for a 700-ton sugar mill in Victorias and offers the sugar planters in Victorias 25% of the shares of stock of the new mill. The planters in Victorias buy P200,000 worth of shares.
1919: May 7, 1919, the new company, Victorias Milling Company, is incorporated with initial paid-up capital of P1,000. M. J. Ossorio is its managing director and chairman of the board of directors. VMC became the 17th centrifugal sugar mill in the Philippines.
1919: VMC’s magneto telephone is installed.
1920: The construction of the VMC sugar mill starts and is supervised by Norberto Capay and Jesus Ossorio, based on the design of Cornelius Johannes Hugo Penning, a Dutch, who is considered a master builder of centrifugal sugar mills.
1921: Production for crop year 1920-1921 is 180,084 piculs with revenues of P254,141.96.
1921: VMC’s Research Department is established. Its initial mission is to create a rational fertilization program in sugarcane agriculture.
1921: M. J. Ossorio invites Carlos L. Locsin, a chemist from Silay City, to join VMC. Mr. Locsin accepts.
1921: VMC’s port in the Daan Banwa area of Victorias becomes operational.
1921: NONSUCO’s farms start using fertilizers.
1923: VMC’s Department of Field Experiments promotes modern sugarcane agriculture methods among its planters. The Department’s two biggest concerns are the experiments on fertilizer response, and the tests on sugarcane varieties such as “Badilla H-109”,the outstanding Hawaiian hybrid, and “Negros Purple”, the dominant local variety.
1925: Cornelius Joannes Hugo Penning becomes the manager of VMC. He designed the mill.
1925: A two-day thanksgiving celebration is held for producing the first large crop of 23,743 metric tons.
1925: NONSUCO celebrates its 8th year in December.
1926: VMC pays all of its debts to the Bank of the Philippine Islands by issuing a US$ 1 million bond through the Pacific Trust Company of Honolulu.
1927: NONSUCO opens its railway through Cadiz in April.
1927: Tamasoc, a pest, starts to spread among crops of NONSUCO and VMC districts. Dr. Dwight Pierce, an entomologist from California, is hired.
1927: M. J. Ossorio buys a seat at the New York Coffee and Sugar Exchange.
1928: A refinery is opened in VMC, the second only in the Philippines.
1928: NONSUCO opens a distillery.
1929: NONSUCO exports first shipment of 2,800 tons of first raw sugar to US in October.
Starting 1929, VMC and NONSUCO will export sugar to US. One of its biggest buyers is the American Sugar Refining Company (AMSTAR).
1931: M. J. Ossorio’s second son, Luis C. Ossorio, arrives from the US to train in the management of VMC and NONSUCO.
1931: Jesus J. Ossorio assumes acting manager role after Cornelius Joannes H. Penning resigns.
1931: Carlos L. Locsin initiates the organization of the Philippine Association of Sugar Technologies in Bacolod and is elected as its first president. This association is the forerunner of the Philippine Sugar Technologies Association or PHILSUTECH.
1932: Shiras M. Jones takes over the management of NONSUCO and VMC when Jesus Ossorio gets sick due to appendicitis while Francis Greenfield, NONSUCO manager, is in the US for vacation.
1932: VICMICO Athletic and Social Club opens a store, billiard and table tennis halls, a bowling alley, a barbershop, and a refreshment shop. Later, a rice mill, an ice plant, and a soap factory are added.
1933-34: During the crop year, POJ high yielding cane variety from Java gives VMC and NONSUCO their all-time prewar high of 990.342 piculs and 1,225,737 piculs, respectively.
VMC refinery also produces 337,129 bags (100-pound bags).
1934: Jose Maria Ossorio, the third son of M. J. Ossorio, arrives in the Philippines from the US to start his management training in NONSUCO and VMC.
1934: In July, VMC signs a contract with the US Army in the Philippines to deliver
1,300,000 pounds of refined sugar.
1937: M/V Nonsuco is purchased for interocean operations and sails for the first time in September.
1938: Saint Joseph’s Hospital is established with Dr. L. Greentree as its director.
1939: Jose M. Ossorio takes over as manager of VMC in Manila as Mr. Francis A. Greenfield, NONSUCO manager, dies in a car accident in California.
1940: A sugar bag factory is set up.
1940: Dr. L. Greenfield resigns as director of St. Joseph’s Hospital. He is replaced by Dr. D. Davies.
1941: Preparations in Manapla and Victorias for the impending war: air-raid shelters, war drills conducted by the Philippine Constabulary, organizing a group of civilian guards, building of evacuation sites at the Aloyan Hills in Cadiz and Cansilayan in Victorias for employees and families who will stay behind to guard the centrals.
1941: Able-bodied NONSUCO and VMC employees signed up to join the United States Armed Forces in the Far East (USAFFE), including Luis C. Ossorio. Don Miguel, Doña Paz and the Ossorio clan stay in the US, except for Luis, Miguel Jr., and Jose, who stay behind to manage the two centrals. Luis is sent to Lanao del Norte as part of the Panay Regimen of the USAFFEE. He brings most of the staff and supplies and equipment from the Saint Joseph’s Hospital.
1941: War comes to the Philippines on December 8 when Japanese warplanes bomb Manila.
1941: By the time the war broke out, the production of NONSUCO and VMC was 1.5 million piculs of raw sugar from 17,000 hectares of plantations.
1941: VMC’s total production is 397,523.62 piculs of raw sugar and 152,305.48 100-pound bags of refine sugar.
1942: Management orders Norberto B. Capay, the supervising engineering, to render the NONSUCO and VMC mills inoperable by dismantling the crucial parts of the machinery and hiding them at Sitio Magbanua in the Marapara Peaks of Silay.
1942: May 20, the Japanese Imperial Army lands in Bacolod City. Jose M. Ossorio and family evacuate to Aloyan Hills in Cadiz. Carlos L. Locsin is left to guard NONSUCO in Manapla. The Japanese soldiers later took over the NONSUCO and VMC centrals.
1942: June 20, Jose. M. Ossorio, his family and other nationals allied with the US surrender to the Japanese army and are temporarily detained in Bacolod City. They are then shipped to Manila and detained at the University of Santo Tomas campus during the war.
1942: Norberto B. Capay, supervising engineer, is left to manage NONSUCO and VMC as Carlos L. Locsin has to flee Negros with Don Claudio R. de Luzuriaga, Sr. due to threats to their safety.
1942: Norberto B. Capay also flees Negros on November 14 for his safety. NONSUCO is now managed by Mr. Sensake while VMC is managed by Mr. Noda.
1943: NONSUCO mill is reactivated to produce final molasses that will be turned into alcohol needed by the Japanese for fuel.
1944: VMC is also reactivated to produce final molasses to produce alcohol. A distillery is built at the site.
1944: On October 20, General Douglas MacArthur and the US liberation forces land in Leyte.
1945: The VMC distillery produces 47 drums of alcohol for the Japanese military.
1945: The detainees at the UST compound that included Jose M. Ossorio and family are liberated by the 1st Cavalry Division of the US Army on February 3. They are later reunited with Luis C. Ossorio and family, and with Michael Clive Ossorio, the eldest son of Jesus Ossorio. They all leave for the US on board an American troop transport ship.
1945: On March 25, the Japanese soldiers occupying NONSUCO leave for the mountains of Patag in Silay where they make their last stand. The NONSUCO central is left in ruins.
1945: On March 30, the Japanese troops leave the VMC site after destroying machinery and setting on fire homes and sleeping quarters.
1945: On the night of March 30, Bacolod is liberated by the 40th Infantry Division of the US Army.
1945: On April 8, Norberto B. Capay returns to VMC from Panay and restores order to stop the looting.
1945: On May 9, the Japanese resistance at Patag falls to the American and Filipino guerilla forces.
1945: In June, NONSUCO is secured from looters.
1945: In the later months of the year, 400 hectares of land are planted with cane seedlings to be sold to the planters to start the rehabilitation of the plantations/district covered by VMC.
1945: Total damages from World War II for NONSUCO and VMC total P1,957,595.91.
(NOTE: Under the Philippine Rehabilitation Act of 1946 passed by the US Congress, the Philippine War Damage Commission compensated sugar centrals that existed before World War II and suffered war damages a total of US$13.3 million for war damages. VMC must have had received part of this for its rehabilitation).
1946: Management decides to give up the NONSUCO central as damages were too costly for rehabilitation. Surviving machinery and assets are integrated into the VMC central.
1947: On April 28 and May 6, the refinery and raw sugar factory, respectively, restarted operations. For 1946-47, the post-war operations, VMC produces 122,208.33 piculs of raw sugar, 2,711 tons molasses, and 121,889 100-pound bags of refined sugar.
1948: The Pension Fund for employees is set up.
1948: Saint Joseph’s Hospital is reopened with Dr. Ricardo Jara as director with Maryknoll Sisters handling the administration.
1948: The athletic and social club is reopened.
1952: The St. Joseph the Worker Chapel is completed. Frederick E. Ossorio has been the prime mover behind the building of the Chapel. Alfonso Ossorio paints the Angry Christ at the altar of the Chapel. The 'Angry Christ' painting made the chapel famous around the world.
1952: Carlos L. Locsin is appointed vice-president and a member of the board of directors.
1952: VICMICO Elementary School is established.
1952: Don Bosco Technical Institute is established after the Salesian Order in Hong Kong accepts the offer of M. J. Ossorio to open a school in VMC.
1953: Norberto B. Capay, the supervising engineer, dies.
1953-54: VMC produces its biggest post-WWII production of 2 million piculs of raw sugar and 1,745,000 100-pound bags of refined sugar.
1955: Carlos L. Locsin is appointed president, succeeding M. J. Ossorio who relinquishes his position as managing director.
1955: In July, the Balolan drydock reopens.
1955: The Industrial Engineering Department is created.
1955: The Pension Plan with group life insurance becomes effective on November 1.
1955: Claudio R. de Luzuriaga, Sr. takes over as the treasurer, vice-president and manager of the Manila office when Harry J. Young dies.
1960: On March 31, the first issue of VICMICO Gazette, the newspaper for employees, is published.
1960: In September, the C-Mill, the first automatic mill in the Philippines, is installed at the raw sugar factory.
1960: The first diesel-electric locomotive (train) is added to the fleet.
1960: Claudio R. de Luzuriaga, Jr. becomes the vice-president and a member of the board.
1961: In January, the St. Joseph’s Arts Guild Choir is organized.
1961: The first pig iron in the Philippines is produced in the blast furnace.
1961: The VICMICO Industrial Workers’ Association is organized.
1964: The foundry is established.
1964: The Rosary Kindergarten is renamed as St. Mary Mazarello School after it is placed under the care of the Figlia Maria Auxiliatrice nuns.
1965: Pacific Airways Corporation, a subsidiary of VMC, starts its airline service between Victorias and Manila.
1965: M. J. Ossorio is elected chairman emeritus while Carlos L. Locsin is elected chairman of the board. Mr. M. Mendez becomes president.
1965: On February 10, Francisco P. Ossorio dies in Spain.
1965: On October 25, M. J. Ossorio dies in Greenwich, Connecticut.
1965: The VICMICO Rural Electric Service Cooperative (VRESCO) is established.
1966: M/T Cadiz, the first company-made tugboat, is launched at the Balolan Drydock.
1966: In November, Jesus J. Ossorio is elected to the board.
1967: Large-scale cane breeding and selection programs are started by the Research Department for high-yield varieties
1967: Jose Maria Ossorio is elected chairman of the board directors.
1967: Carlos L. Locsin is conferred the lifetime title of chairman emeritus.
1968: Cattle and swine breeding and fattening operations are started.
1969: A carbonation plant is set up, the first in the Philippines.
1969: On May 7, VMC’s 50th anniversary is celebrated.
1969: Management Information Service is established.
1970: The largest ever production of 3,385,209 piculs of raw sugar is achieved.
1970: Manuel V. Locsin becomes president of VMC.
1972: Victorias Chemical Corporation (VICHEMCO) is the first company affiliate is established.
1973: Another record high of 3,408,322 piculs of raw sugar is achieved, breaking the record set three years before.
1974: VMC takes over the management of Insular Refining Company in Mandaluyong, Metro Manila.
1974: Doña Paz Yangco-Ossorio passes away in Greenwich, Connecticut.
1974: A new milling contract is signed with a group of planters in Panay Island.
1974: On October 31, the Maryknoll Sisters turn over the administration of St. Joseph’s Hospital to the staff.
1974-75: Sugar price goes up as high as US$ 0.65 per pound in the world market.
1975: Canetown Subdivision is set up through a subsidiary, Canetown Development Corporation. The Subdivision’s Phase 1 covers 27 hectares and is divided into 440 residential lots.
1975-76: Victorias Agromachinery Corporation is established.
1975: On June 17, VMC starts Panay Cane Purchase Project with the planters of Panay Island.
1975: On July 6, the cane transloading station in Bay-ang, Ajuy, Iloilo, is inaugurated.
1975: The 1920 telephone is improved with the installation in the VMC compound of a new dial system with 410 lines and 40 connections.
1975: On September 18, VICHEMCO’s furfural plant starts operations.
1975: The post office in the VMC compound is established.
1976-77: New production records are set: 3,951,241 piculs of raw sugar for the crop year, and daily production of 28,770.32 100-pound bags.
1976-77: Agribusiness Division and Management and Administrative Services are established.
1976-77: St. Joseph Cottolengo School for the disabled is established.
1976-77: Claudio R. de Luzuriaga, Jr. succeeds Manuel V. Locsin as president.
1977: The VICMICO Institute of Management is established in partnership with the Univesity of Negros Occidental – Recolletos in Bacolod City.
1978: The refinery produces the all-time record of 8,095,894 LKG.
1979: VMC acquires North Legaspi Land Development Corporation and inaugurates the building onwed by the subsidiary located at Legaspi St., Legaspi Village, Makati City.
1985: VMC food processing exports tuna chunks to Canada.
1987: The First Planters’ Day is held. VMC confers awards to outstanding planters.
1988: A Yoshiimine boiler is operated to add steam supply and add electricity-generating capacity to bring down bunker oil consumption and electric power cost.
1988: VMC, through its subsidiary, Canetown Development Corporation, turns over to the University of St. La Salle a new building and a 1.8 hectare lot for a Victorias Campus of the University.
1988: Prawn ponds expand to 35 hectares in Guisok.
1989: In March, Michael Clive Ossorio dies. He was a former resident director.
1989: In May, Luis C. Ossorio dies in Greenwich, Connecticut. He was a former vice president and director.
The timeline in the book ends in 1989.
* * * *
VMC is the reason why Victorias, now a city, is in the map, so to speak. With the billions of pesos in economic activities that VMC has created, be they direct or as a multiplier, it practically transformed a sleepy town into a city. Since 1919, it has caused the migration of people, attracted skills and labor, introduced and created new technologies, and enabled local businesses to flourish in Victorias, although the financial crisis that forced VMC into debt restructuring in late 1990’s revealed stories about mismanagement, corporate corruption, improper use of bank loans, and other practices that brought it to its knees.
One other legacy that its founder, Don Miguel Ossorio and his brother, Jesus, left in Victorias City is the church of the Our Lady of Victory Parish that is located along Osmeña Avenue. The Ossorios helped construct the church through building materials and labor.
VMC celebrated its 100th year in 2019.
* * * *
Photo credits: “Victorias – A History in Pictures”, Mr. David Granada, photographer.
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