Coco flour eyed for pan de sal

MANILA, Philippines – The price of pan de sal, the breakfast staple of Filipinos, may go down as coconut refiners said they are willing to supply up to 100 metric tons of coconut flour per month to bakers.

“The price of pan de sal can go down if there is enough supply of coconut flour and if the government can teach bakers how to properly use this flour as an additive,” Chito Chavez, vice president of the Philippine Federation of Bakers, told The STAR.

In a telephone interview, Chavez said the price of bread, specifically pan de sal, can go down if the bakers can use coco flour, an indigenous product, properly.

According to Chavez, using local raw materials will help the country stabilize prices because it will be immune to shifts in the world market and the movement of the peso against the dollar.

“We can achieve this through the help of the government and the Department of Agriculture. They have to push the use of coconut, camote and squash as possible additives. We need technical support,” Chavez added.

Chavez said the price of pan de sal would again go up once flour millers decide to increase prices. Local millers already announced that there would be no price adjustment this month.

The price of shortening, another raw material used to produce pan de sal, went up yesterday.

“The increase in the price of shortening will have a negative effect on us but it is not enough to affect a change in the price of pan de sal. We will only increase our price if the (price of) flour increases,” Chavez said.

Flour is priced at P910 to P980 per 25 kg. bag retail.

In a separate interview, Jesus Arranza, president of the Coconut Oil Refiners Association (CORA), said they would make available coco flour to bakers.

“The makers of coconut flour already agreed that they will make available 100 metric tons to local bakers,” Arranza told The STAR in a telephone interview.

According to Arranza, coconut flour is at least 30 percent cheaper than ordinary flour.

Arranza said he has already talked with the makers of virgin coconut oil to transform the coconut pulp into flour.

He said Julie’s Bakeshop is already using coconut flour for its cookies but not yet for its pan de sal.

“Soon coconut flour will be used by bakeries for the production of pan de sal,” Arranza said. “I’ve already spoken with the bakers association and they agreed to use coco flour.”

In order for the taste to remain the same, bakers can only substitute 10 percent of coconut flour for every batch of pan de sal.

The supply of flour in the global market is dwindling. Worldwide demand is at 600 million metric tons while the supply is only 87 million metric tons.

Bread makers have already sought the help of the Department of Trade and Industry to help mitigate the rising cost of flour.

Trade and Industry Secretary Peter Favila said he has already gotten in touch with a supplier from the United States. Although the supplier is willing to provide the country with wheat, he said it would be expensive.

Spring wheat is the raw material for the production of flour for pan de sal and other breads. Soft wheat is used for pastry and cake flours.

Prices of other grains and grain-based commodities such as corn soybeans and soybean meal have also gone up.

Wheat prices from other exporting countries are most likely to move up as well to take advantage of prevailing premium prices.