Papaya overtakes canned tuna in 2025 export performance
GENERAL SANTOS CITY—In one of the country’s regional agricultural powerhouses, the lowly papaya is gaining importance.
The crop, which sells for P5 to P15 per kilogram in South Cotabato, has overtaken the flagship canned tuna as one of the top export products of the Soccsksargen region in 2025.
Papaya ranked second, posting export receipts of $128 million, followed by canned tuna at $125 million, according to the 2025 Regional Economic Situationer released by the Department of Economy, Planning and Development-Region 12 (DEPDev 12).
Top earner
The development marks a significant shift, as papaya did not even rank among the region’s top 10 export products in 2024. In 2020, the fruit was still sold at retail prices as low as P3 per kilo in South Cotabato.
“A notable structural shift emerged within the region’s fruit-export segment. Fresh papayas climbed to the second-highest rank in the regional export portfolio … surpassing even the region’s long-standing flagship export, canned tuna,” the report noted.
Canned tuna is primarily produced in General Santos City, known as the “tuna capital of the Philippines,” which also exports fresh sashimi-grade tuna.
For 2025, crude coconut oil remained Soccsksargen’s top export earner at $281 million.
DEPDev-12 Director Romel Patrick Tanghal said this highlights the region’s strong position in global coconut oil markets.
Total regional export earnings reached $1.35 billion, or about P81 billion at current exchange rates, based on Bureau of Customs-General Santos City data.
Rounding out the top exports were pineapple juice ($71.8 million), refined coconut oil ($71.7 million), deodorized coconut oil ($53 million), refined bleached deodorized coconut oil ($50 million), fresh pineapple ($49 million), canned pineapple ($39 million),
Soccsksargen’s export profile remains heavily dependent on high-value agribusiness products and processed commodities.
Its export markets include Asia, North America, and the Middle East, with Japan, the United States, and South Korea as the top destinations.
Region 12 covers South Cotabato, Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, and Sarangani provinces, as well as the cities of General Santos, Koronadal, Tacurong, and Kidapawan.
