The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) through the Regional Operations and Development Group (RODG) earmarked some P650 million to develop the country's pangasius industry and targeting to generate P945 million revenues by 2016.
Popularly known in the market as cream dory, pangasius has been proven to be a good raw material in the processing of value-added products like bacon, fish ball, fish cakes, sausage, hotdog, tocino, chicharon, patties, among others.
Pangasius is considered as the third most important fresh water fish group within the aquaculture sector. It can be grown locally and can be cultured in all sizes of habitat, from backyard to large scale. It is noted for its adaptability to waters with low levels of dissolved oxygen, RODG head Undersecretary Merly M. Cruz explained.
DTI records showed that since 2008, the Philippines has been importing the fish from Vietnam at an average of 30 - 40 container vans or 600MT valued at USD1.650 million yearly.
We intend to reduce the importation, thus, we embarked on the pangasius project purposely to also address the food security program of the government and to provide doable work programs and fundable livelihood projects to targeted income groups, Cruz explained.
Cruz said that DTI has developed the Industry Plan for Pangasius and to date, the pangasius industry has already six projects in place: the Pangasius Organic Farming, Fishpond Nursery and Fish Processing Facility in Magungaya Center for PALMA Alliance; Pangasius Cart in Tandag, Surigao del Sur, Demo Farm on Organic Pangasius at San Simon, Cagayan de Oro; and the TDP Project in General Santos City for Tateh and BMEG Feeds.
It is a viable and growing industry we have monitored 48 expansion projects that are being developed in various parts of the country now, Cruz added.
She said four projects have been approved for financing amounting to P4,271,010 broken down as follows: P3.8m for Magungaya Center for PALMA Alliance; P150,000 for Samahang Mangingisda at Magbubukid ng Barangay Cawayan (SMMBC) in Real, Quezon for its Pangasius Cart Project and Nursery-Hatchery Facility; P15,000 loan amount for the Soccorohon Employees MPC for the Pangasius Food Cart Project of Mr. William G. Fabio and P306,010 for the establishment of small scale feed mill facility in Butuan City.
She outlined the industry's accomplishments', among which, the establishment of 15 new markets and eight market linkages, development of 38 new products which include 26 menus, 22, value added products, development of three new brands: La Pangga, Santa Marta and Carm Foods and the strengthening and sustaining of 20 organizations.Filipinos are particularly reliant upon marine waters but human economic activity and climate change has driving transformation in our marine ecosystems. The fish catch has reduced significantly and affected not only the deep fishing operators and fish processors but also the lowly municipal fishermen, Cruz explained.
She said that under the Industry Plan for Pangasius, DTI will develop a total area of 270 hectares, create 2,700 jobs and produce 614MT of fillet.
Pangasius could be harvested within six months and has a survival rate of 95 percent. Our underutilized/abandoned fishponds and water resources like spring, river and marsh are tapped to culture fish stocks such as pangasius, Cruz added.