On May 17, shortly after the end of the period of fasting in the Muslim communities, the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) will launch two new major agricultural industries expected to boost the region’s economy while protecting the highlands from soil erosion and denudation – Hass Avocado and Abuyog Sweet Jackfruit.
Over the next five years, MinDA will target 100,000 hectares for each of the two crops for a total coverage of 200,000 hectares and an estimated earnings of $2-B every year.
Hass Avocado and Jackfruit will be two agricultural products which will be pushed and boosted by MinDA under its Mindanao Greening Program because the domestic demand and export potentials.
These two crops will be introduced as agro-industrial commodities in commercial scale and volume, instead of just backyard fruit trees for family consumption.
Through a Virtual Convention, originally scheduled May 8 but which was moved to a date after the Ramadan to ensure participation of Mindanao’s Muslim farmers and stakeholders, MinDA will launch the Mindanao Avocado and Jackfruit Organizing Council (MAJOR-C) on May 17.
A MinDA Team led by Assistant Secretary Cherrylyn Santos-Akbar has been tasked with organizing the Virtual Convention with the participation of the different sectors and stakeholders.
As part of the Greening Mindanao Project, these two crops will be promoted in the highlands of Mindanao which had been deforested for environmental protection and to prevent soil erosion while providing income opportunities for poor families, especially the Tribal Communities.
Hass Avocado is a variety of avocado with thick and rugged rind which allows it to be transported with less damage and a longer shelf life.
The Hass Avocado is a premium fruit which Japan and China imports from the US and South America but which Philippine Agriculture had not ventured into because of the absence of planting materials.
Jackfruit, on the other hand, is an endemic fruit tree which has a huge demand in food processing but which had not been promoted by the agriculture sector.
Every year, the Philippines imports P500-M worth of jackfruit from Vietnam and Thailand for “ice cream” and “turon” manufacturing.
MinDA will promote both crops as agro-industrial products giving focus on the quality of production and assurance of a market.
The participants in the May 17 Virtual Convention are:
1. Mindanao Development Authority – Lead Convenor;
2. Department of Agriculture, Mindanao Regional Offices;
3. Bureau of Plant Industry, Mindanao Regional Offices;
4. Department of Trade and Industry, Mindanao Regional Offices; 5. Department of Science and Technology, Mindanao Regional Offices;
6. National Commission on the Indigenous People;
7. Department of Environment and Natural Resources;
8. Government Financing Institutions (Land Bank & Development Bank of the Philippines; Agricultural Credit Policy Council through Credit Cooperatives);
9. Cooperative Development Authority (CDA);
10. Registered Plant Propagators and Plant Nursery Operators; 11. Registered Farmers’ Cooperatives;
12. Prospective Consolidators and Buyers (i.e. Dole Philippines, Avante Agri Products, Dizon Farms, Eng Seng, etc.)
The Virtual Convention aims to organize the stakeholders of both the Jackfruit and Hass Avocado Industries into a cohesive group which would set production targets based on the absorptive capacity of the market.
They will be assisted by concerned government agencies in attaining the target by providing technical and funding support.
The prospective consolidators and buyers will provide assurance of market absorption while the GFIs will provide funding for the program with loan maturity based on the gestation period of both products.
#GovernanceIsCommonSense!
#KungGustoMaramingParaan!
(Photos by Mayette Tudlas, MinDA OC)
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