The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Palawan, under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP), held an “Operations Management Seminar for Banana Chips Production” for farmers in Aborlan, Palawan on September 21, 2022. 

The activity was participated by 20 members of the Aborlan Rainbow Marketing (ARM) Cooperative. This paved the way for the participants to increase their awareness of the high-value activities of the Cooperative in terms of banana processing enterprise.

Ms. Hope Joy M. Palermo, a local Go Negosyo Mentor and the owner of Reals Food Products, shared with the participants, experienced-based points on how to maximize the cooperative’s resources such as manpower, machines, money, and other resources while minimizing the cost of producing goods.

Mentor Hope Joy Palermo discusses the core concepts of Operations Management in an actual food processing scenario to the members of the Aborlan Rainbow Marketing Cooperative during the Operations Management Seminar for Banana Chips Production on September 21, 2022, at the Banana Processing Center in Barangay Iraan, Aborlan, Palawan

In addition, Ms. Palermo discussed good manufacturing practices, product costing and pricing, a situationer on the food industry in the new normal, and practices to prevent COVID-19 in the workplace. She also emphasized that it is a must for the cooperative to revisit and navigate its prepared business model canvass from time to time to manage the processes of producing and distributing processed banana products.

The cooperative members requested the facilitator and Francis Ian V. Uapal, DTI Palawan Provincial CARP Coordinator to examine their processing center, and afterward, provide points based on their assessment inside the plant-from receiving raw materials up to the distribution of finished goods. Significant points were raised in terms of no-wood contact surfaces, the use of a sustainable source of energy, drainage, and control points inside the food manufacturing facility. 

Date of Release: 10 October 2022