The Department of Agriculture (DA) continues to curate ways to boost the livelihoods of local coffee farmers, as beans harvested in the country have great potential to compete in the global market.

“We’re proud to say that our coffee beans are winning globally. That’s a good sign. We won the Philippine Coffee Quality Awards,” DA Undersecretary for High-Value Crops Cheryl Marie Natividad-Caballero said Tuesday in a media briefing in Quezon City.

According to her, in the last Philippine Coffee Quality Competition, there were some 187 entries, of which over 40 were new.

Local coffee has a future

“That is one manifestation that we are aware that our coffee has a future in terms of how competitive it can be relative to quality,” Caballero said, adding that because of this aspect, a good number of local producers, roasters, and coffee houses are promoting coffee beans from the Philippines.

“Even the processors and multinational companies that sell coffee in the Philippines are aware of that. In the past month, we have convened with our coffee farmers. If we can increase the purchase of these processors to at least 20,000 metric tons (MT) more, then that will mean a big market for our local robusta coffee,” she added.

According to Caballero, their target is to consume 40,000 MT per year. “But if we can hit half of that, then that’s one big leap to provide local markets,” she said.

Moreover, Caballero said the DA also plans on positioning the local coffee by using the Competitiveness Enhancement Measures fund to support local liberica production.