The Board of Investments (BOI) has approved the grant of incentives to coconut fiber producer All Bright Resources International Inc. for its P30-million export project.
The BOI said the company qualified for incentives under the 2017 Investment Priorities Plan (IPP) as it is into the production and manufacture of export products.
The government keen on increasing shipments of nontraditional coconut products, such as coco peat and coco fiber.
“We are already one of the world’s leading exporters of coconut products, despite the dip in production last year due to bad weather, but I am confident that with favorable weather conditions, the industry will have a resurgence this year,” BOI Governor Napoleon Concepcion said in a statement.
All Bright is expected to produce up to 6,327 metric tons (MT) of coco fiber and 5,062 MT of coco peat annually in its plant in Santa Maria, Davao del Sur.
The firm is expected to export all of its production output to China, Korea, Japan and other neighboring countries.
Its operations already began in September with 124 personnel on board.
The company said raw materials will be sourced from the farmers in Malita, Santa Maria, Kidapawan and other municipalities of Davao del Sur.
Coco fiber or more commonly known as coco coir is a product made from the outer shell of a coconut. Coco peat is a natural fiber made out of coconut husks.
According to the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA), coconut production in copra terms reached 2.26 million metric tons (MMT) in 2015.
The United Coconut Association of the Philippines Inc. (Ucap) estimated that production in 2016 reached 2.05 MMT. With favorable weather conditions, the Ucap expects production to increase to 2.24 MMT this year.
Export figures from the Philippine Statistics Authority showed shipments of coconut products in January to July reached $1.09 billion, up 58 percent from $683 million in the same period last year.
