Tuesday, January 23, 2007 Farmers need more trade fairs
THE establishment of more trade companies in Cebu will help create an equal trading opportunity between farmers and buyers, eliminating the use of middlemen, an official of Southern Partners Fair Trade Corp. (SPFTC) said.
“What usually happens is that farmers sell their products to middlemen and these middlemen sell it to other buyers at higher prices. So in the end, lugi ang farmers because most middlemen are fond of making tawad,” SPFTC marketing coordinator Mark Anthony Echin said (In the end, the farmers are at a losing end because the middlemen are the ones who make more money).
Interest
Echin said fair trade companies wish to address this problem and ensure the interest they impose on goods purchased from farmers are “fair.”
Cebu-based SPFTC is engaged in the export and domestic selling of organic food, such as dried mangoes, and processed food, like mango jam, mango puree and pineapple syrup, among others.
Demand
The company exports products in allied fair trade companies in Japan, Canada, Germany and Vietnam.
Echin said there is a huge demand for dried mangoes, particularly in Japan.
SPFTC is among the exhibitors of the Pyesta sa Sugbo, organized by Moonstruck Marketing Services and SM City Cebu.
The exhibit, located at the mall’s third floor, will run until Jan 30. (MMM)
