Surigao del Sur is just about to set the one town-one product bar higher.

A team from the North Eastern Mindanao State University (NEMSU) Liangga campus has started conducting market acceptability tests for its danggit (dried fish) ice cream.

This NEMSU ice cream is the first in the country to use dried danggit as the prime ingredient. The danggit is sourced from Lianga town and nearby areas of Surigao del Sur where fish is abundant.

The project team, led by NEMSU faculty member Harvey Kier O. Ranara, showcased the danggit ice cream in the recent provincial caravan of the Caraga Regional Development Plan in Butuan City.

“No scale, no fish taste and smell.  Instead, it has a nutty, creamy taste and sweetness is just enough. The original is the best flavor,” said Robespierre Tradio, a government employee who tasted all flavors of the danggit ice cream.

Ranara said the product started as a student’s project in 2017.

“Seeing the potential of the project, our team sought approval from the  school and it was considered a research faculty project until 2021,” he added.

The regional office of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) also took notice of the product’s potential and gave the project team a P1 million grant to further develop the product.

The DOST also brought the product to various exhibits to test its viability before it was showcased in the 2022 Regional Science and Technology Week where it won second place in the product innovation competition.

The exposure paved the way for more opportunities, allowing Ranara’s team to further test the market by making the danggit ice cream commercially available in stores.

“Our market display was beneficial because we received significant feedback on product improvement. In 2023, we opted to proceed with our ice cream enhancements into four flavors such as original, coffee, cashew and tablea,” he added.

The product is currently being sold at P30 to P40 per 200 gram cup or P20 per scoop.(RLE/PIA-Caraga)