VENDORS of famous delicacies in Carcar City believe hosting the Central Visayas Regional Athletic Association (CVIRAA) last month helped boost their sales, which were affected when the African swine fever (ASF) was discovered in the city last March.
Wella Pasko, who has been selling chicharon (pork rinds) and ampaw (puffed rice) for 21 years, told SunStar Cebu that sales went up by at least 300 percent.
“Katong mingaw gyud no, amoang halin moabot lang og P5,000 pinakadako, pero kadtong kusog gyud kay moabot P20,000 ug kapin. Pag-CVIRAA mga in-ana gyud,” Pasko said on Monday, May 1, 2023.
(During the peak of the ASF scare, we would only earn a maximum of P5,000 per day, but now, especially during CVIRAA, we were selling at least P20,000 per day.)
Pasko has been manning a stall along Diversion Road in Barangay Poblacion 2 for seven years.
She sells the chicharon for P900 per kilo, but she also sells them in small packs for P35 each, while the ampaw is P35 per pack or three for P100.
“The players would come to my stall to buy along with their teachers and coaches,” Pasko said in Cebuano, adding that players from other cities and provinces in the region tended to buy in bulk as a homecoming gift or pasalubong.
However, she said some players, particularly those from Bohol and Negros Oriental, only purchased ampaw since the two provinces have an existing ban on the entry of pork products from Cebu.
Negros Oriental Gov. Carlo Jorge Reyes issued a total ban on live hogs, boar semen and pork meat and pork byproducts from Cebu last April 18, while Bohol Gov. Erico Aumentado issued a similar ban last March 7 yet.
“Many of the players only bought ampaw as presents because they couldn’t bring the chicharon home with them because of the ban. However, while they were here, they bought and ate a lot of chicharon,” Pasko said in Cebuano.
Carcar City hosted the CVIRAA from April 24 to 28.