CALAPAN CITY, Oriental Mindoro (PIA) — The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) in Mimaropa is focusing on enhancing the skills and knowledge of small-scale salt processors in the province through its six-day training program for some 180 salt farmers from the towns of San Jose and Magsaysay.
Jason Advincula, a post-harvest technical staff member of BFAR-Mimaropa, said his office targets to position Occidental Mindoro as the “Salt Capital of the Philippines.”
Advincula said it is BFAR’s intention to teach salt farmers about the modern processes for gathering and processing salt from the sea, enabling them to significantly grow their production capabilities.
The seminar titled “Capability Training on Salt Industry Project Development” was conducted by the bureau’s Fisheries Production and Support Services Division (FPSSD)-Fisheries Post Harvest and Marketing Services Section (FPHMS).
BFAR-Mimaropa’s higher objective is for salt farmers in San Jose and Magsaysay to spread their newfound knowledge to counterparts across the region, eventually expanding the local salt-processing industry.
It was explained that by increasing local salt production, the Philippines can reduce its dependence on salt imports, which can have a positive economic and self-sufficiency impact.
According to the Department of Science and Technology, Occidental Mindoro is one of the biggest salt-producing provinces in the country, owing to the fact that it is surrounded by saltwater.
At the height of its production in 1990, it boasted of producing and supplying about 60,000 metric tons (MT) of 338,000 MT or 18% of the country’s annual salt requirement.
Today, while Occidental Mindoro still supplies salt to neighboring provinces in Southern Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, only 12% of the national salt requirement or almost 75,000 MT of 590,000 MT comes from the province. (GATS/PIA MIMAROPA)
