Tell us about the ice factory you want to build.

An FDA license is required before you open

Yes. An FDA License to Operate is mandatory for an ice manufacturing plant in the Philippines, including a small one. A mayor’s permit or a water-refilling license is not enough if you make, bag, and sell tube, cube, or block ice.

Why ice plants are under the FDA

• Ice is food. The Food Safety Act of 2013 (RA 10611) covers anything people ingest, and commercial ice is consumed or mixed into drinks.
• The FDA Act of 2009 (RA 9711) makes it illegal to run a food manufacturing plant without a License to Operate.
• FDA Circular No. 2022-012 lists pre-packaged tube and cube ice, so the FDA regulates and tests it as processed food.
• The FDA inspects the plant before it can be licensed. A water refilling station is a local permit. An ice plant is under the FDA because the ice is processed and packaged.

What happens without the license

• The FDA can order the plant to stop, padlock it, and seize the ice, packaging, and equipment. A business sharing that site can lose its local permits too.
• Fines for manufacturers can run from ₱500,000 to ₱5,000,000, plus up to ₱1,000 for each day the violation continues. Food-safety fines can be doubled when there is no License to Operate.
• Running an unlicensed food plant can mean imprisonment. If contaminated ice harms a customer, the penalties get heavier, and company officers who allowed it can be charged.

Get the License to Operate before you open. Do not put the capital in first and hope the paperwork can follow.