LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – “Cordillera is one of the regions that will really contribute to the saving of the (country’s) coffee industry”, Philippine Coffee Board Co-Chair Pacita U. Juan said in her keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the first-ever Cordillera Coffee FIESTA held recently at the Benguet State University (BSU) Gymnasium.
At the Cordillera Coffee FIESTA, participants and guests were treated with not just free cups of Arabica and Robusta but with samplings of the Igorot culture as well.
Opening ritual and beating of the gongs, songs and dances by the School of Living Tradition, and traditional coffee roasting by the Benguet Organic Arabica Enterprises and Sagada Arabica Coffee Council greeted the attendees both at the ribbon cutting and opening ceremonies of the festival’s trade fair and launch, respectively.
Juan, a supporter of the Cordillera coffee industry, related that in a visit to Kalinga, she learned that one town had 4,000 hectares of coffee plantation.
“The whole province of Cavite has 7,000 hectares”. She pointed out that more coffee plantations in the lowlands are being converted to residential areas, resorts, and golf courses.
Aside from land, the Cordillera Region has other comparative advantages when it comes to coffee production according to Juan.
Juan also took note of the region’s good climate and altitude, which are also favorable for coffee production.
“Since most farms are in rainforest areas, coffee is shade grown. Farmers grow natural coffee. It (coffee production) is organic by default,” she said.
With these advantages, Juan is confident that Cordillera’s coffee production could meet the demands of and opportunities in the country’s coffee industry.
“Our consumption of coffee continues to climb at the same rate of population,” she explained.
Meanwhile, Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCAARRD)- Applied Communication Division Director Lily Ann D. Lando, representing Executive Director Patricio S. Faylon, highlighted the Council’s support for the coffee industry.
“PCAARRD commits to supporting initiatives to ensure the production of quality coffee beans and defining and specifying goals for the commodity and/or the industry in the medium term”, Lando said.
She added that the Council shall be pushing for the development and mastery of specific knowledge and technology and their use.
“More importantly, we shall support programs with strong science and technology (S&T) content. By 2016, the Cordillera coffee industry would be sustainably viable. Beyond 2016, the industry would come into its own as one of the flagship industries of the Cordillera Region”.
Lando also updated the crowd, composed of hundreds of BSU students, media practitioners, and stakeholders of the Cordillera coffee industry, that PCAARRD is developing an industry strategic plan (ISP) that shall embody the directions of the Council’s support from 2012 to 2016.
In the tech transfer aspect, the Council will support the establishment of a Science and Technology-based Farm for improved coffee productivity in specific sites like Benguet and Sagada. It shall also push for the improvement of cup quality of Philippine coffee.
On the policy side, the increase of R&D support to the industry and advocate for the strict implementation of the RA 10068 or the development and promotion of organic agriculture in the Philippines shall be pursued by PCAARRD.
The first Cordillera Coffee FIESTA is part of the month-long 50th founding anniversary celebration of the Cordillera Administrative Region in July. The Highland Agriculture and Resources Research and Development Consortium spearheaded the festival on July 5─6.
Other activities conducted during the FIESTA were on-the-spot essay writing and photojourn contests, techno-business forum, regional coffee consultation meeting, and a barista show.
Benguet Governor Nestor B. Fongwan also hosted a dinner-cum-socials where guests were regaled with performances of the School of Living Tradition and other talents from Benguet.
FIESTA stands for Farmer-Industry Encounters through the Science and Technology, a technology promotion and transfer modality of PCAARRD.