Date 2018 to push inclusive growth

THE 20th staging of the Davao Agri Trade Expo (DATE), largest and longest running trade expo in Southern Philippines, will happen on September 20 to 22, 2018 at the SMX Convention Center, Lanang, Davao City, according to DATE 2018 chair John Carlo B. Tria, who is the vice president for professional service ventures of the Davao City Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. (DCCCII).

In support of the Davao Chamber’s 50th anniversary theme “Towards an Inclusive Chamber”, Tria said the DCCCII’s flagship event focuses on the inclusive growth of agriculture business in Southern Philippines. This year’s DATE is designed to push for the socalled “Golden Crops“which are cacao, coffee, coconut, corn, cassava, rice, banana and the newly included bamboo, which are highly abundant in the region and in Mindanao.

In an interview, Tria said highlighting the golden crops could increase the potential of agribusiness in Mindanao because this three-day trade event invites producers, suppliers and consumers from all over the Philippines to participate in the said event. The trade event helps to promote local products and agribusiness to expand their network, and knowledge regarding agriculture. Tria also added “the event is an instrument to spur livelihood opportunities to the region. Further expanding agriculture is the key to increasing our nations GDP and making sure that this growth will spread to more regions like the Visayas and Mindanao.”

In line with this year’s Date theme: “Better Agri for EveryJuan”, DATE 2018 is a great avenue to help families on rural area, where most of the low income earning people reside, to invest in agribusiness. Tria also added that the recent increase in the growth rate in our agriculture since 2016 , can be expanded by helping many farm and upland communities improve their productivity and increase their incomes. 10 million rural families, many from Mindanao, will benefit when agriculture is strengthened. This will also enable our traders and producers to find new sources, provide more food to our people as they increase the volume of their business. Important matters that seen as part of DATE 2018 objectives are multisectoral participation involving government and private organizations in Mindanao and across the Philippines, and the commodity mapping that aims to identify the kinds of crop suited for agricultural production in a specific area.

The highlights of this year’s biggest expo: cacao, coffee, coconut, corn, cassava, rice, banana and bamboo are projected to have individual presentation in acknowledgement of the golden crops’ role in Mindanao’s booming agriculture economy, as well as the opportunity one may get in investing on these crops. One example is the Cacao industry that have skyrocketed its production successfully and made Davao the New Cacao Capital of the Philippines, and the booming coffee industry, which is the rising star in Mindanao’s fruit basket. PR