CACAO producers are eyeing to hike cocoa production to as much as 15,000 metric tons (MT) within five years or almost triple the average 5,600 MT dry cocoa beans produced by the Philippines annually.

The Cocoa Foundation of the Philippines Inc. (Cocoaphil) said it is banking on government support as well as its own advocacy of encouraging coconut farmers to practice intercropping and plant cacao trees.

Cocoaphil is an organization that actively promotes the integrated and sustained development of the Philippine cocoa industry.

Cocoaphil is one of the partners in the Success Alliance Program, a project funded by the United States’ Department of Agriculture whose chief aim is to increase cocoa production in the country.

In a briefing with reporters, Cocoaphil’s field operations manager Josephine Ramos, however, admitted that doubling or tripling cocoa production may be a tall order given the lack of government support for a 10-year “road map” for developing the local industry.

“What we need is a policy statement from the Department of Agriculture (DA) that they are supporting this road map to develop the industry. But until now, there is no support from the DA,” said Ramos, noting that the road map has been rolled out in October 2006.

Ramos noted that the Philippines has a lot of potential in terms of supplying part of the global demand for cacao. In Asia alone, the market for cocoa beans is estimated at 460,000 MT.

“Global demand for cocoa-based products such as chocolate is on the rise because of its health benefits,” she said.

According to research, flavanols in cocoa may help treat diabetes, stroke and dementia.

Cocoaphil noted that if the cocoa road map is implemented and supported by the DA, the industry can easily produce 75,000 MT to 100,000 MT of dry cocoa beans a year.

Agriculture Secretary Arthur C. Yap, for his part, said the DA is willing to sit down with industry stakeholders and find out how the government can help.

“What we want is for [producers and stakeholders] to make a presentation on how they are going to increase the income of farmers. They have to show how they intend to enhance the industry’s competitiveness,” said Yap.

The Philippines was the first Asian country to plant cacao and develop its cocoa industry.

But the implementation of the comprehensive agrarian reform program led to the demise of many cacao plantations in the 1990s, according to industry players.

The country requires about 32,000 MT of dry cocoa beans each year. The Philippines imports its requirement for cacao beans from Indonesia, Malaysia and cocoa powder from Singapore.

The imports are processed and are re-exported to Malaysia, South Korea, and the US in the form of cocoa butter, cocoa paste and cocoa beans.

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CACAO producers are eyeing to hike cocoa production to as much as 15,000 metric tons (MT) within five years or almost triple the average 5,600 MT dry cocoa beans produced by the Philippines annually.

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