Wednesday, July 18, 2007 Dolefil eyes blueberry mass production in 2008
GIANT American firm Dole Philippines, Inc. (Dolefil) targets to start mass propagation of blueberry in South Cotabato Province by the end of 2008, a top company executive said.
Kevin Davis, Dolefil's managing director, appeared bullish on the prospects of blueberry production in the area.
"We have already established a nursery and plans to start small farms in late 2008," he said at the sidelines of the groundbreaking rites for a school building the firm will give as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility program.
Davis said blueberry "would be a long-term venture for the firm known for its fresh and processed pineapple products."
Blueberry, which can be harvested five years from planting, according to Davis, is said to be high in anti-oxidants, which slows the aging process.
Three months ago, a top ranking Dolefil official who spoke on condition of anonymity confirmed that blueberry is being tested by the firm since last year in Kalsangi district, an exclusive abode in Polomolok, South Cotabato where the firm's production plant is based.
"We have imported 12 blueberry varieties from the United States and three to four are showing promise," he said.
The executive said if blueberry will be successfully tested, they would market them in fresh frozen form also in the United States .
The source said if the experiment will be successful the company will cultivate the crop through contract growing schemes at areas with higher elevation.
He noted that blueberry thrives on a cool climate or an area with an elevation of at least 1,000 meters above sea level.
"We will transfer the technology to those who are willing to raise the crop if ever the adoptability test says so. We are very particular on the quality of the fruits," he said.
The executive revealed they are now doing tissue culture on those varieties that are showing promise in a laboratory maintained by six women.
"Blueberry has a very huge demand in the United States as consumers have shifted to it instead of peaches and the like," the executive said.
South Cotabato Governor Daisy Avance Fuentes hailed the company for its pioneering effort to find out the productivity of blueberry in the area.
"This is a high value crop that would enhance the province's image as an agricultural producer," she said.
In its website, the firm confirmed selling fresh frozen blueberries as a healthy snack item to be mixed with the firm's crushed pineapple and banana products and laced with milk.
Dolefil ventured in this town in 1963 and is maintaining at least 10,000 hectares of pineapple plantation through a rental scheme aside from the 6,000 hectares planted by contract growers.
Based on data from the regional Department of Trade and Industry, canned and fresh pineapple largely produced by Dolefil reached export sales of about US$696 million from 1997 to 2004 alone, or an average of US$99 million a year (around P4.9 billion).
In Maasim, Sarangani province, Alberto Arquillano, municipal planning and development office chief, said Dolefil has been scouting the area for possible blueberry production.
"The town can provide them at least 50 hectares if the company will decide to grow blueberries here," he said. (BSS)
