“When the National Coffee Development Board (now the Philippine Coffee Board, Inc.) was first created, one of our challenges was to get consumers to focus on Philippine-grown coffee as opposed to imported coffees,” related PCBI founding trustee Guillermo Luz on the creation of the iconic Kape Isla seal. Luz pointed out that the group’s original… Read More
Princess Kumala “Lalah” Elardo dreams of peace and prosperity for her beloved Sulu. Determined to realize this dream, she embarked on projects that could help find livelihood opportunities for more people, particularly in coffee farming. She also searched for groups who share the same dream and found food and beverage company Universal Robina Corporation (URC).… Read More
Honey processing has started to gain the spotlight to differentiate specialty coffee beans. The process refers to the honey-like liquid that is produced before drying. PICK RED Follow a strict “pick red” only harvesting protocol of coffee berries. FLOAT VERSUS SINK After the berries are washed, flotation of berries is conducted to separate the floaters… Read More
The law mandates that at least 5% of the budget of government agencies and NGOs should be spent on Gender and Development (GAD) programs. Unfortunately, because of lack of knowledge, it is misused, underspent, or not used at all. GAD, however, is not just a matter of budget. It also ensures that there is gender… Read More
“What is your coffee culture and where is it heading?” It was a question that Victor Mah, President of the ASEAN Coffee Federation (ACF), posed to everyone at ACF’s 2nd Board Meeting. He particularly mentioned Philippines, Myanmar, and Vietnam because the three countries can boast of their centuries-old tradition of growing and consuming coffee. In… Read More
In 2016, PCBI and the International Women’s Coffee Alliance (IWCA) brought about 10 ASEAN women to learn more about coffee and to train the other women in the ASEAN coffee-producing countries that included Laos, Indonesia, Thailand, and Cambodia. The training took them to Cavite State University and different coffee farms, to learn about roasting and… Read More
The Philippines is gifted with fertile soil and fertile minds, producing some of the world’s greatest produce such as coffee. Shaping the great minds that determine the direction for this product begins in the campuses―right where the action takes place. The academe in the Philippines has taken on various roles to promote coffee quality through different… Read More
“A man walked in and shot my parents. My father lived but my mother passed away. My father was crippled because of the gunshot. Without enough money, my siblings and I would take turns in going to school. That is why I did not have the drive to finish my studies,” says Mimie Alyub Sali… Read More
While coffee production has been increasing in the past few years, the Philippines is still a long way from meeting the local demand for coffee. The Ultimate Coffee Guide gathers industry stakeholders to assess how everyone can enhance coffee productivity. Robert Francisco joined PCBI as its technical consultant in February 2017, to help set up… Read More