DOST commits support for Tuburan coffee farm
The government, through the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-Cebu) has committed to help develop coffee farming in Cebu, specifically in Tuburan.
DOST Cebu provincial director Tristan Abando vowed to provide technological know-how in making the coffee beans commercially viable, thereby expanding the demand volume.
"The promising Tuburan coffee needs competitive packaging to make it world class," said Abando emphasizing the serious stance of the agency to throw in more support focusing mainly on the development of packaging and labeling of the homegrown and ground coffee product in Tuburan.
The coffee packaging evolved from transparent stand-up pouch plastic packaging to a more elegant black opaque, matte finish, stand-up, zip-locked aluminum composite plastic.
"This packaging type has been chosen since this could effectively preserve the freshness of the ground coffee and protect it from contaminants, thereby extending its shelf-life," added Abando.
The over 2,000 hectare coffee farm in the northeastern part of Cebu-Tuburan, has the capacity to produce 4.3 million kilos of beans a year. If this is roasted and sold at prevailing P600 per kilo, it has a potential earnings of over P2 billion annually.
According to Abando, aside from the existing packaging and labeling support given by the agency, it is also continuously studying on how to further improve the homegrown coffee product to be at par with world-class standard.
DOST-7 regional director Edilberto Paradela likewise vowed to extend more funding allocations for the Tuburan Coffee project, particularly in introducing technology to help upgrade the current coffee production and for further packaging improvement through its Accelerated and Sustainable Anti-poverty Program (ASAPP) counterpart program — dubbed Community Empowerment through Science and Technology (CEST).
The Philippines used to be the third largest exporter of coffee in the world in the 1960s. Today, the country is importing over half of its coffee requirement.
Latest Euromonitor survey indicated that coffee (business) posted strong growth in 2016 in the Philippines, attributing to the increasing disposable income of consumers in the country, and the popularity of coffee shops expanding not only in the urban centers, but even in suburban areas and tourist destinations around the