Ilocos Sur gov’t holds coffee festival to boost Robusta coffee industry

VIGAN CITY, Ilocos Sur (PIA) — In its dedication to promoting the Ilocos Sur Robusta coffee, the provincial government has once again staged the Ilocos Sur Coffee Festival from Nov. 25-29 at the Provincial Farmers Livelihood Development Center here.

The coffee festival, according to the provincial government, has been conducted since 2022 to boost awareness among the public that the province has its own high-quality Robusta coffee-producing towns.

A new highlight of this year’s festival is the coffee painting, or “Kape at Pintura,” participated in by students and professional painters in the open category.

Delmar Torrano was hailed as the champion in the painting contest open category, while Christine Quintinita was the champion for the student category.

They also organized a brewer’s competition won by Chrisel Frando, a latte art competition for baristas with Vic Mariano snatching first place, a sorting competition won by coffee farmer Vilma Lidem, and repurposing of coffee ground training for the coffee farmers, and many more.

Each of the first placers was awarded with a P15,000 cash prize.

Visitors also had the opportunity to sample coffee and pastries from 13 participating stalls, which competed for the best booth design.

Happy Bean by Rosario Tabing won the best booth design, also taking home P15,000 as cash prize.

In his message, Governor Jeremias Singson stated, “[To become] the best and finest coffee in the Philippines, and perhaps the whole world, that is our dream.”

“Our consistent success in the Philippine Coffee Quality Competition (PCQC) is a testament to their [coffee farmers] skills and passion. To our coffee farmers, from the bottom of our hearts, thank you very much,” he said.

The coffee farmers, including Mabini Ubuan, who gained recognition as the Robusta Coffee King in the province due to winning in the PCQC in 2021 and 2022, also graced the festival.

Ubuan said, “The industry has changed a lot from when we only sold our coffee for low prices; but now, with the support of the provincial government and the Department of Trade and Industry, the price of coffee has bloomed.”

He added, “We are very grateful for the support of the government, and I hope that they never cease from helping us. I also want to encourage coffee growers to improve their produce even more.”

Just this August, the Philippine Coffee Guild announced that the value of each kilogram of Ubuan’s fine Robusta coffee reached $61 or around P3,500 during the bidding at the PCQC 2024. (AMB/ATV/PIA Ilocos Sur)

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