Sales generated by coconut micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) more than tripled to P309.57 million at this year’s COCONUTPhilippines Trade Fair, pointing to stronger demand for higher-value Philippine coconut products.
The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said sales at the third edition of the trade fair surged from P98.72 million last year, an increase of more than 200 percent.
Of the total, P97.64 million came from cash and booked sales, while P211.93 million represented transactions still under negotiation, indicating potential follow-on orders after the Aug. 26 to 30 event at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City.
Held alongside the Philippine Coconut Authority’s 40th National Coconut Week, the fair featured specialty food, organic oils, personal-care products, handicrafts, and other value-added coconut products.
PCA chief executive officer Dexter Buted said expanding markets for coconut products is key to raising farmer incomes.
“Number one is to increase really the income of the farmers—that’s our mandate,” Buted said.
The trade fair is part of DTI’s market development support under the Coconut Farmers and Industry Development Plan, which helps enterprises with product development, design, branding, packaging, and access to domestic and overseas buyers.
DTI said 232 coconut-farmer enterprises participated in this year’s event.
Since the program began in 2022, DTI and its attached agencies have provided market development support to more than 1,650 coconut-farmer enterprises nationwide, helping producers move beyond raw coconut products and into higher-value markets.
