NEWS RELEASE
07 March 2014
BLACK AND SWEET. Organically-produced black rice (left) and coco sugar from Mindanao become instant hits during the 25th Biofach Organic Fair, the world’s leading trade fair for organic food products held last month in Nuremberg, Germany. The Bios Dynamis organic black rice together with the TreeLife coco sugar are among the featured 2,235 exhibitors from 76 countries during the fair who presented their food and cosmetic products to more than 42,000 international buyers
Mindanao’s organic black rice and coco sugar earned international attention at the recently held 25th Biofach Organic Fair, the world’s leading trade fair for organic food products held last month in Nuremberg, Germany.
Bios Dynamis, an organic rice producer popular for its sought-after organic black rice, and the TreeLife coco sugar from the town of Carmen showcased Mindanao-grown organic products during the four-day exhibit in Germany, which was attended by more than 42,000 trade visitors from 135 countries.
The event featured 2,235 exhibitors from 76 countries who presented their food and cosmetic products to top buyers from Germany, Italy, France, and the Netherlands.
“The reception of the international community to our locally grown products is very promising. It only shows that indeed, there is a bigger market for our farmers and small to medium scale businesses, as long as they pass specific international standards,” said North Cotabato Governor Emmylou Taliño-Mendoza who participated in the exhibit.
Mendoza added that the participation of Bios Dynamis Don Bosco Foundation and the Tree Life Coco Sugar to the annual exhibit was spearheaded by the provincial government of Cotabato and funded by the Philippine-European Chamber of Commerce (ECCP).
“Our presence there affirmed the potentials of our local organic products in penetrating markets of more advanced countries and I hope this progress will inspire more farmers in going organic,” she said.
To date, the North Cotabato provincial office is processing confirmed orders from Netherlands, UK, Australia, and New Zealand, which are expected to be formalized in the next six months. Moreover, potential buyers and customers from USA, South Africa, Asia, and Singapore have expressed interest in the featured Mindanao products.
Bios Dynamis has already shipped organic black rice and other food products to Hong Kong, Macau, and China. Tree Life Coco Sugar on the other hand initially introduced their products to Netherlands and UK.
Mendoza said the provincial government of North Cotabato is looking into a regular participation to similar international exhibits, since they serve as platforms in showcasing the best of Mindanao’s products.
“This is again a strong indication of viability of Mindanao’s high value agricultural products penetrating larger international markets,” said Secretary Luwalhati Antonino, whose office, the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) has ramped up investment promotion efforts to bring Mindanao products to foreign markets.
In a statement, Lord Mayor of Nuremberg Ulrich Maly said that BIOFACH is an important flagship and image-builder for the city and for the European Metropolitan Region of Nuremberg.
“One major goal, for example, is to link organic and regionality more strongly and promote regional value creation partnerships,” he added.
