BIZ BUZZ: ‘Bicol Cacao’ for the win
The Philippines is championing the recognition of “Bicol Cacao” as a global brand, banking on the private sector’s sweet investment to turn this dream into a reality.
“Let’s make Bicol a sweet spot on the global cacao map—literally and economically,” Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said at the first Bicol Cacao Congress and the fourth Cacao Festival held in Naga City.
Tiu Laurel unveiled the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) vision of making cacao a driver of rural employment, farmer income and sustainable investment, and the rise of a globally recognized “Bicol Cacao” brand, noting the region’s unique climate and soil conditions that make it ideal for cacao cultivation.
The agriculture chief pointed to the growing of Alea Chocolates, named by the DA and the Department of Trade and Industry as the region’s key cacao processor.
According to Tiu Laurel, a key driver of the global cacao push is the ongoing update of Cacao Industry Roadmap, which encourages greater private sector investment in the local sector.
If all goes well, the government might achieve the sweet goal of placing locally produced cacao on the global investment map.
