The Department of Agriculture is working to turn ube into a major export product through better coordination and branding.
The Department of Agriculture held a meeting with ube growers, processors and exporters in Manila. Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said the government will follow an industry-led approach rather than set top-down plans.
He stressed that the department will provide funding and research based on needs identified by stakeholders. Current challenges include fragmented supply chains and a lack of unified marketing.
Plans call for a national ube federation, expanded use of tissue culture for planting materials in Quezon, Laguna, Pangasinan and Aurora, and a market study on branding. Tiu Laurel noted that competition comes mainly from other ASEAN countries.
