With DA, MinDA help! Village-Made Corn Snacks Sought By Foreign Buyers

What started as just a backyard livelihood for village women in the mountain town of Antipas, North Cotabato may soon become an export product of the country.
A group of women who belonged to the Rural Improvement Club of Malangag, Antipas led by Florencia Galinato processed glutinous corn produced by farmers in the village into snacks called “ChichaCorn.”
The “ChichaCorn” made out of Non-GMO white corn or “malagkit” gained popularity among local buyers increasing demand in the market.
The group, however, was not able to cope with the orders because they could not sun-dry the corn during the rainy season.
In 2017, the Rural Improvement Club sought funding support from the Dept.of Agriculture through the SAAD Program.
The SAAD, a rural development program which I designed when I was Governor of Cotabato to economically empower rural folks, gave the Malangag RIC P1.5-M to construct a dryer and shed.
When I moved to the Mindanao Development Authority in 2019, I visited the project and found out that the women needed a sanitary biomass dryer because of increasing market demand.
While MinDA had a limited budget, a grant of P1-M was given to the Malangag RIC to support the project.
Last Thursday, the mechanical dryer specially designed for “ChichaCorn” production by Jover Light Industries of Iloilo was officially turned over by MinDA to Malangag RIC.
Today, foreign groups are already placing their orders for “ChichaCorn.”
During the turn-over, I told the RIC members that the packaging has to be improved to penetrate the international market.
Now, even in my private capacity, I will help improve the packaging and access to bigger markets.
#ConsistencyInAdvocacy!
#KungGustoMaramingParaan!
(Photos of the turn-over courtesy of MinDA Media Group)