QUEZON CITY ---- The Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA), in partnership with the Department of Trade and Industry – Export Marketing (DTI-EMB), launched the first ever virtual Business to Business (B2B) meetings for coconut on Monday, August 9, 2021.

With the difficulties faced by the economy amid the COVID-19 Pandemic, the PCA and DTI strive to assist our coconut farmer organizations, cooperatives, and other local suppliers to survive by promoting local coconut products and connect exporters and suppliers to the domestic and international markets.

During the opening of the event, the guest speaker, Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Ramon Lopez highlighted the contribution of the coconut industry in the country’s revenue. In the past three years, the Philippine coconut industry has shared more than USD 1.7 billion in revenue annually. He drew attention to the Philippines global market standing as the second largest coconut producer in the world with over 14.69 billion coconut production every year. Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, revenue from export coconut products reached USD 1.6 billion. He also shared DTI’s programs to further boost the development of the Philippine coconut industry and create more innovative and high-value coconut products.

PCA Administrator Benjamin Madrigal, Jr. supported this and further underscored the growing need for quality assurance. “The Philippines is preferred by many importing countries as a source of quality coconut products. As this is our competitive advantage against other countries who export coconut products, we stress the importance of compliance to product, process, and quality standards”, Admin. Madrigal said.

The three-day business-to-business (B2B) meetings held from August 9 to 11, 2021, served as a platform for the local coconut industry to showcase its products to prospective importers from Japan for coconut cream, South Korea for dried coconut chunks and skimmed coconut milk, China for coconut milk and coconut water, United States for VCO, young coconut, and crude coconut oil, France for cocopeat and coco chips, Canada for RBD coconut oil, Switzerland for cocopeat, and Taiwan for coconut MCT. We have also opened a new market in Lithuania for RBD coconut oil.

25 local and foreign buyers were invited to meet the 85 coconut suppliers which made 58 business matches. Some of the participating domestic buyers included Jollibee, San Miguel Foods, and KG Global Beverages, while Hainan Yedao, Florentaise, Goldman Rise, and Clivia Nobilis represented some of the foreign buyers.

On the supplier side, Tantuco Enterprises, Andy Albao Corporation, Yakap at Halik, KAAGAPMUCO, Greenlife Coconut Products, Bansalan Coconut Farmers and many more had the chance to present their products.

The success of the event has proven that aided by technology, we can find effective ways on how to help our stakeholders adopt to the “new normal” so that advancement of the coconut industry can be achieved thereby bringing confidence that “the coconut industry will be a major contributor to the overall growth of the Philippine economy,” as DTI Secretary Ramon Lopez remarked on his speech.

For more information on other events, please visit nationalcoconutweek.com.