GENERAL SANTOS CITY — DTI 12 is hosting the Treasures of Region 12: BLENDS Edition, a three-day event featuring coffee, cacao, coconut, and banana products. The event which will start on Friday, September 29, in General Santos City, includes a trade fair, learning sessions, and talent showcases, with the goal of increasing the income of farmer-beneficiaries, as emphasized by Flora Politud-Gabunales, the regional director of DTI 12.

KORONADAL CITY, SOUTH COTABATO – The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Region 12, through its Rural Agro-enterprise Partnerships for Inclusive Development and Growth (RAPID Growth) Project, is all set for a three-day event that highlights products made of coffee, cacao, coconut and banana in the Treasures of Region 12: BLENDS Edition.

The BLENDS, which is an acronym for Boosting Local Economy by Nurturing in-Demand Specialties, will commence on Friday, September 29, and will be held at Veranza, KCC Mall of Gensan in General Santos City.

It has three major components: selling locally produced products through a mounted trade fair, fora and learning sessions on best practices and the presentation of pressing industry concerns, and competition and demonstration sessions that will showcase local talents in coffee brewing and value-adding using the four focus crops.

In an interview with Flora Politud-Gabunales, the Regional Director of DTI 12, she underscored that the ultimate goal of the activities being conducted under the project is anchored into achieving the developmental goal of increasing the income of the enrolled farmer-beneficiaries by 60 percent at the end of the project term.

We are very optimistic that through our BLENDS event, we can help our local farmers and processors market their products and link them to institutional buyers, provide a venue for stakeholders to learn innovations and discuss industry concerns, and showcase local talents and skills in different value-adding sessions like the latte art and brewers competition—all leading to providing the farmer-beneficiaries with a sixty percent increase in their income when we end the project,” said Politud-Gabunales.

RAPID Growth Project is one of the special programs being implemented by DTI that focuses on value chain-based and market-driven business development initiatives aimed to achieve inclusive and sustainable economic development for rural farming communities in selected target regions in the country.

In Region 12, the project covers the provinces of Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, and Sarangani, where the institutional strengthening initiative on market development and promotion will be executed as part of BLENDS. ♦

Date of release: 27 September 2023

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