‘Ubebe I love you’: Ube more prized than gold and silver in Baguio
Acres of planted ones are reportedly wiped out by floods, not only among northern growers like Baguio and Benguet, but also among farmers in different parts of the archipelago like Quezon province. Who would have thought that ube could also be a victim of the flood control scandal?
ENTRANCE to Good Shepherd Convent in Baguio.
Photograph courtesy of Deni Bernardo
From over P9,000 in 2023, gold prices have reportedly dropped to P8,000 per gram this year, making it a good time to invest in gold, a miner and jewelry shop owner in Baguio City public market told DAILY TRIBUNE.
Silver, another staple Baguio product, has a current price range of P80 to P211 per gram and is expected to continue to rise, an indication of it being a good investment like gold, the jewelry shop owner said.
In spite of these, the jewelry shop owner found it hard to attract gold and silver buyers. Many Baguio visitors still choose to line up instead for ube (purple yam) jams.
BAGUIO ube jams and flake.
Photograph courtesy of Deni Bernardo
DAILY TRIBUNE held its team-building activity in Baguio early this week and before heading back to Manila, we decided to stop over at Good Shepherd to buy pasalubong (souvenirs). At Good Shepherd last Monday before 11 a.m. when we arrived, there were several windows selling treats and the line for non-seniors and PWDs (persons with disabilities) was as usual, very long, taking 30 minutes to an hour to reach the counter.
But a few minutes into the line, our group heard the intercom announcing: “Ube jam is sold out!”
SIGNAGE informing customers that ube jam is sold out for the day at Good Shepherd.
Photograph courtesy of Deni Bernardo
Immediately, the crowd evaporated and all that was left were very short queues of people interested to buy something else in lieu of ube jam.
“It’s so unfair! I haven’t been back to the Philippines for 33 years, I lined up for a long time for ube jam, but I wasn’t able to get any!” cried a visiting Filipino migrant. “If you’re able to buy one, I’m willing to buy it from you for P5,000 just so my efforts won’t be for naught!” she told the crowd.
Other customers responded by giving recommendations on where she could also shop for ube jam. “Hmp! Let’s just go home and make ube ourselves!” declared another disappointed customer.
