Tuesday, October 30, 2007 Demand for dried mangoes rises
DRIED mangoes with kalamansi that are manufactured by marginal communities in Cebu are selling well in Japan and Italy.
Southern Partners and Fair Trade Corp. (SPFTC) managing director Geraldine Labradores said they are shipping to Japan some 10,000 to 15,000 of 100-gram packs of dried mangoes with calamansi every month.
Italy, an emerging market for this organic product, is also “fast catching up” as nearly 10,000 of the 70-gram packs are being shipped there in a periodic basis, she said.
“Our dried mangoes are very popular in Japan and Italy because they are sweet and easy to chew. But the advantage of our products, apart from being organic, is that it has vitamin C from the calamansi,” Labradores said.
Cebu-based SPFTC is engaged in the export and domestic selling of organic food, like dried mangoes and processed food, like mango jam, mango puree and pineapple syrup, among others.
Organic sugar and banana chips from Cebu are also gaining popularity in these countries, Labradores said.
Virgin coconut oil and organic oil from small producers in Mindanao are also “interesting” export products, she added.
But despite the strong potential demand for locally produced goods, she admitted that “it is not easy to export products abroad” especially in Europe due to strict trade laws.
“There are so many certifications required even down to the packaging,” she added.
Labradores lauded the efforts of foreign fair trade partners who have helped repackage local products to comply with international standards.
Fair trade groups in Japan, she added, have been subsidizing the cost of buying mangoes in Cebu just to keep up with the strong demand for mango produce in their country, she said.
Conform
Recognizing the urgency of conforming to the stringent trade laws abroad, Labradores said SPFTC will seek to gain a fair trade labeling certification that allows them to market food and other specialty items in grocery stores.
Other than Japan and Italy, SPFTC also exports products in allied fair trade companies in Canada, Germany and Vietnam.
“We also aim to be certified organic in a fair trade next year. This will have a very big impact to Philippine-made goods,” she told a press conference Friday at the
People’s Fair Trade shop, a display center of fair trade group products on Osmeña Blvd., Cebu City.
While most of the items on display at the shop are export products, it also caters to mainstream buyers.
Fair trade or alternative trade involves small producers all over the world who produce good and quality services, and market them locally and internationally to gain better leverage at pricing by doing away with middlemen.
Labradores also urged Filipinos to patronize Philippine products which are recognized internationally for their high quality and unique craftsmanship.
“Because products sold in fair trade centers are made by small and marginalized producers, buying them helps improves the living conditions of many Filipinos,” she said. (MMM)
