Philippine Daily Inquirer

Hot Moro sauce sells like hot cakes in Tawi-Tawi, Sabah

- By Julie S. Alipala Inquirer Mindanao

BONGAO, Tawi-Tawi—Hot Moro sells like hot cakes here and in neighborin­g Sabah in Malaysia.

But that has nothing to do with human traffickin­g.

According to Simunul Mayor Nazif Ahmad Abdurahman, Hot Moro is the label of a homegrown dried, crushed or powdered chili product.

Abdurahman said Simunul farmers started planting different varieties of Philippine chili three years ago to meet the high demand in the province’s 307 islets.

“With us Muslims, whatever tribe we may be, our meal is not complete without chilies,” Abdurahman said in an interview.

More profitable

Hadji Faisal Malande, a farmer and now the general manager of Simunul Economic Enterprise (SEE), said farmers started by intercropp­ing chili with coconut.

“Then they realized that they make more money from chili than coconut,” he said.

At the Simunul port, buyers wait for farmers to bring their freshly harvested chili, locally known as lara. These are immediatel­y shipped to Sabah, Malaysia.

In mainland Bongao, a kilogram of fresh chili is priced at P300. During lean months, the price goes up to P700 per kilogram.

Need to organize

Simunul, an island town with a land area of 10,390 hectares, has 14 barangays and a population of 38,239.

According to Abdurahman, Simunul’s sandy loam soil is ideal for chili farming. Three months ago, the local government of Simunul started processing their chili, bringing in more profits for the farmers,

“All we need to do is to organize the farmers. Right now, it’s a loose group of farmers,” the mayor said.

Numbering about 200, Simunul farmers produce 800 kg of chili per month, Malande said.

P500 per bag

A bag of chili seeds is priced at P500.

“Besides, we can use mature dried fruits for seedlings. We sell 75 percent of the produce and keep the 25 percent for seedlings,” Malande said.

At the first internatio­nal business conference held last week by the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), Malande, Abdurahman and other chili growers showcased their Hot Moro chili to visitors. That earned good feedback from regional Gov. Mujiv Hataman.

Hataman has committed to pour in P1 million for chili production in Simunul.

Abdurahman said the chili growers planned to acquire more equipment like a grinder, crusher and solar drier.

 ??  ??
 ?? JULIE S. ALIPALA/INQUIRER MINDANAO ?? RED HOT SPICE Don’t be turned off by the label Hot Moro on the bottled product shown above. The chili product is in demand in TawiTawi and Sabah—without which a meal isn’t complete.
JULIE S. ALIPALA/INQUIRER MINDANAO RED HOT SPICE Don’t be turned off by the label Hot Moro on the bottled product shown above. The chili product is in demand in TawiTawi and Sabah—without which a meal isn’t complete.

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from Philippines