LA TRINIDAD, Benguet, Philippines - The country's first IMO-certified Arabica coffee plantation which is located in this landlocked province got the support of the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCARD) to boost the booming coffee industry in this highland province that will help uplift the livelihood of thousands of coffee growers.
Experts from the Benguet State University (BSU) which houses the aforesaid plantation claimed the new support from PCARRD will help enhance and rehabilitate the province's supposed lucrative Arabica coffee industry.
The four parts of the higher education institution's research and development project include characterization and selection of existing Arabica coffee cultivars for organic production in Benguet; organic fertilizer for organic coffee production in Benguet; biological agents and cropping systems for the management of major insects, pests and diseases of Arabica coffee for Arabica coffee production and the development of best practices on post-harvest handling and packaging of organically produced Arabica coffee.
The projects are geared towards addressing the alleged scarce information on diversity and conservation practices of Arabica genetic resources in Benguet, the lack of strains or lines for Arabica coffee production, the limited supply for organic production, the limited biological control agents, the limited information and technologies
Arabica coffee plantation gets support for processing, roasting, packaging, storage and blending techniques of organically raised coffee.
For this year, the agriculture department has reportedly allocated P50 million for the rehabilitation of the Philippine coffee industry which is aimed at regaining the country's status as one of the major coffee producers in the world.
The projects are also aimed at addressing the wrong prioritization given to Robusta which comprises 70 percent of the Philippine coffee production. The remaining 30 percent is composed of the Liberica and Arabica.
Earlier, the Highland Agriculture and Resources Research and Development Consortium (HARRDEC) also extended support to the snowballing call for all out enhancement of the Arabica coffee production, especially in the Cordillera to help spur the desired economic growth considering that Arabica coffee thrives best in the region because of its conducive climate and fertile soil.
According to the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics, Northern Luzon produces an average yield of 0.240 metric tons out of the more or less 5,000 hectares being tilled for coffee production.
In the year 2009, the statistics office recorded 395.5 metric tons of green coffee beans produced in Benguet.
However, the total coffee production is still not enough to meet the Philippine demand for coffee which was pegged at 65,000 metric tons in 2008 and has increased to about 3 percent per annum since then.
Based on previous researches, coffee is the second most consumed beverage in the country and that the same is already an integral part of Cordilleran culture.
