Not too long after the Department of Trade and Industry-R02 launched the “Market Advancement through Nurturing and Greening Operations to Enable Sustainability in Region 2” (MANGOES2) in Rizal, Cagayan, major deliverables and components of the project, which is a re-entry plan submitted to the Development Academy of the Philippines, have been implemented with the hope of achieving the end result of improved quality and marketability of Carabao Mangoes in the municipality.
Mango production experts from the University of the Philippine Los Baños, AP+LB Agritech Development Incorporated and the Department of Agriculture were tapped as speakers during the Training on Quality Improvement conducted on January 30-31, 2017 at the Illuru National High School, Illuru Sur, Rizal, Cagayan.
Engr. Emmanuel Amatorio of UPLB has introduced the Hot Water Tank technology which he personally designed and is used in producing well and evenly ripened mangoes, instead of calcium carbide.
Mr. Charlie Meridores, Project Director of AP+LB, producer of the agricultural product Better Harvest, also delivered a comprehensive talk on improving production of mangoes, both in quality and quantity through integrated crop management, proper pruning and fertilization.
He said that if carried out properly, the strategies will yield to higher production, bigger and sweeter mangoes. On the other hand, Ms. Remedios dela Rosa of DA-RF02, discussed the standards of Good Agricultural Practices, its importance and the requirements needed for certification.
Seeing great potentials from the mangoes of Rizal, Cagayan, DTI-Region 02 believes that tapping and nurturing this opportunity will lead to a dramatic inclination of economic and social gains of the mango industry.
True to this commitment, the project team of MANGOES 2 initiated a Branding and Marketing Strategy Workshop held on February 9, 2017 at the Balay Na Malaueg Conference Hall, Centro, Rizal, Cagayan.
The workshop was participated in by members of the Rizal Mango Producers Marketing Cooperative and officials of the Local Government Unit.
Resource speaker on brand development was Mr. Lloyd Luna, popularly known as Pambansang Inspirasyon and the Chief Enabling Officer of Lloyd Luna Communications, one of the leading digital marketing and business development service providers in the country.
Mr. Luna inspired the participants with his personal experience in business and encouraged the participants to dream big as he did, even with very little resources.
He guided the participants with the dos and don’ts in identifying product brands and emphasized that the brand should embody their culture and the characteristics of their product.
As result, the participants adopted “Malaueg” as their mother brand with two sub-brands: “Malaueg Supreme” which will cater the high-end market and “Malaueg Tender” for the common market.
To maximize the benefits of these strong brands, MANGOES 2 project team members facilitated the marketing strategy workshop which provided an in-depth SWOT analysis, identification of target markets and marketing objectives, and the strategies to increase marketability of the products and penetrate larger markets.
With these initiatives, the mango growers of Rizal, Cagayan are hopeful that in the near future, the Malaueg Mangoes will also be known in the domestic and international markets.