COCONUTPhilippines trade fair logs PHP 309.57 million

PASAY CITY, Philippines — Coconut micro, small, and medium enterprises generated PHP 309.57 million in completed sales and prospective deals at the 2026 COCONUTPhilippines Trade Fair, more than three times the amount recorded a year earlier, according to the Department of Trade and Industry.

Of the total, PHP 97.64 million represented cash and booked sales, while PHP 211.93 million involved transactions still under negotiation, underscoring the event’s role not only as a retail marketplace but also as a venue for longer-term commercial deals.

The five-day fair, held Aug. 26–30 at the SMX Convention Center Manila in Pasay City, marked the third edition of the national trade exhibition for coconut-based enterprises.

The DTI said the 2025 fair generated PHP 98.72 million, although an earlier figure cited in promotional material for the 2026 event placed the total at PHP 96.9 million.

This year’s fair brought together about 300 coconut MSMEs from across the country, expanding participation from 213 enterprises in 2025.

Participants showcased value-added coconut products spanning food and beverages, health and wellness, personal care, home and lifestyle goods, crafts, and sustainable nonfood materials.

The range of products reflected government efforts to move coconut enterprises beyond basic commodity production and into higher-value processing, product development, branding, packaging, and commercial distribution.

Philippine Coconut Authority Administrator and CEO Dexter Buted said increasing farmer earnings remains central to the government’s coconut programs.

“Number one is to increase really the income of the farmers—that’s our mandate,” Buted said.

Buted said the government is also working to improve raw-material production through better planting materials and fertilizer while supporting farmers through intercropping, health assistance, enterprise development, training, and scholarships as newly planted coconut trees mature.

Among the groups benefiting from those programs is the Barangay Salamanca Coconut Farmers Association, or BASACOFA, which has 280 farmer and fisherfolk members, including 66 women.

The association, led by chair Precy Macasling, produces coconut coir mats, native bags, and coconut-based food products.

“From the start, pinuntahan kami ng PCA kasi nalaman nila sa amin na marami kaming produkto na coconut. Then binigyan niya kami ng mga equipment,” Macasling said.

Macasling said the group also sought livelihood assistance and received training from the DTI, while the trade fair provided another channel to promote its products and raise members’ incomes.

Other exhibitors demonstrated the potential for coconut products to move into higher-value markets, including Palawan-based Lionheart Farms, which processes coconut flower sap, or tuba, into natural sweeteners, syrups, condiments, and low-glycemic beverages.

The fair was staged alongside the PCA’s 40th National Coconut Week and forms part of the government’s Coconut Farmers and Industry Development Plan, or CFIDP.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. approved the revised CFIDP for 2024–2028 in May 2025, with the PCA serving as the lead agency coordinating programs intended to raise farm productivity and income, reduce poverty, and modernize the coconut industry.

The CFIDP is implemented under Republic Act No. 11524, the Coconut Farmers and Industry Trust Fund Act, which directs the use of coconut levy assets for programs including farmer training, research, marketing, credit, processing facilities, crop insurance, scholarships, health services, and farm development.

Under the law, the DTI is responsible for research, marketing, and market-promotion initiatives designed to help coconut enterprises develop market-ready products and connect with domestic and international buyers.

The 2026 fair included 232 CFIDP beneficiary enterprises that received business and market-development guidance through the DTI’s “Niyog at Negosyo,” or Coconut and Business, sessions.

Since the market-development program began in 2022, the DTI has assisted more than 1,650 coconut-farmer enterprises nationwide, according to figures released after the trade fair.

The event also featured a Buyers Lounge where participating enterprises could meet corporate and institutional buyers, present product lines, discuss sourcing requirements, and pursue longer-term supply agreements.

The DTI said the opening program, led by Trade Secretary Cristina Roque with PCA officials, included the release of a CFIDP coffee-table book, the launch of a 2022–2025 terminal report documenting program milestones and beneficiary stories, and the debut of an official CFIDP website.

Government officials have positioned such market-development activities as one part of a broader strategy linking research, technology, production support, enterprise development, and commercial access so coconut farmers can capture more value from products beyond the sale of raw agricultural commodities.

The PHP 309.57 million reported at this year’s trade fair shows substantially stronger commercial interest than in 2025, although nearly seven-tenths of the total remained prospective transactions rather than completed sales when the results were announced.