Ethnic foods for OFWs a 'sleeping giant' in local food industry

MANILA, Philippines - There’s a ‘sleeping giant” in the local food industry.

But once it stirs from its ’slumber”, it can become a strong pillar of the country’s economy.

These are ethnic foods that can answer the yearnings of Filipinos abroad for hometown delicacies they relished before they crossed the seas in search of the proverbial “greener pasture.”

As former Science and Technology Secretary William G. Padolina once said:

“There are now about 8.5 million Filipinos abroad. If these professionals and overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) can be convinced to just buy at least $100 worth of ethnic foods (processed fish, vegetables, and meat that comply with global standards), the Philippines will have $850 million income coming in and that’s even more than what the Philippines earns by exporting coconut oil.”

Dr. Padolina, currently deputy director general of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), explained that food industries problems are standards that require technology, monitoring systems, and passing hygienic standards.

He advised: “Develop people who can make a good reading of the global market. These are the opportunities available to us, especially for agriculture and food. As a broad approach, we are looking at, initially, the ethnic food market for Filipinos.”

As of 2007, there were already 8.75 million Filipinos abroad, according to statistics compiled by the UP School of Economics.

By country, the United States absorbed the most number of Filipinos – 2.8 million. It was followed by Saudi Arabia, 1,066,401; Canada, 462,935; Malaysia, 244,967; and Japan, 202,557.

There were also 266,552 sea-based Filipino workers.

Encouragingly, there are now technologies that can preserve ethnic food products, thus, these can reach their destinations unspoiled in a long period.

Take the famous buko pie of Los Baños, which is now in the export market. Making this possible is a technology developed by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) through its Small Enterprise Technology Upgrading Program (SETUP).

SETUP has introduced a technology called blast-freezing, which blows freezing air into the pies for two hours in minus 30-40 degrees Celsius.

Coconut pies usually have short shelf life (three days if unrefrigerated and one week if refrigerated).

“Deep freezing could make the pies last more than a month,” DOST states. DOST-SETUP also assists in packaging the pies with the right materials and tasteful design. This makes the pies look a lot better and stay longer in the shelf, enabling them to gain competitiveness in the local and foreign markets.

Across the country, some ethnic delicacies are now well-packaged that they can reach their far-away destinations still in good, palatable form.

For instance, Leyteños in Metro Manila and abroad, particularly in Canada, need not go back to their roots for their favorite snack foods. Reason: Moron and binagol can now be brought to their doorsteps, thanks to DOST-SETUP.

Through DOST-SETUP’s technological assistance, some Leyte entrepreneurs can now accommodate wider markets for their products in Luzon and Canada.

Bohol is also gradually being known not only for its “inedible chocolate hills” and internationally filmed tarsier but also for its “kisses”.

Peanut kisses, that is. These are peanut-based candies made of ground peanut and sugar. Now being sold in specialty shops as far as Metro Manila and with a high potential for export, it is manufactured by the SETUP-assisted Bucarez Food Processing Corp. in Bohol’s capital city of Tagbilaran.