Davao Coffee Beginning To Rise In Coffee Scene (Part 1)
Published on June 13, 2021
(Editor’s note: This is a three-part series on the growing coffee scene in Davao Region)
DAVAO Region is known to be a major food basket in the country due to the variety of crops and fruits it produces. It is popular for the durian and pomelo. It is also known as the country’s top producer of cavendish bananas. Recently, Davao Region has also been declared as the Cacao Capital of the Philippines.
In recent years, we are also seeing another crop industry that would soon be associated with Davao too — coffee. According to the Philippines Statistics Authority (PSA), Davao Region produces 17.8 percent of the 60,000 metric tons (MT) of coffee produced nationwide in 2019. Davao Region is the second-largest producer of coffee in the Philippines, tied with the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (Barmm). The biggest coffee producer in the country is Soccsksargen at 34.2. Davao Region also has the second-largest number of fruit-bearing coffee trees at 13,608,316 as of 2015.
John Paul Matuguinas, Department of Agriculture-Davao (DA-Davao) regional focal person for the High Value Crop Development Program (HVCDP), said Davao Region is a suitable place to plant coffee trees.
“Fertility sa soil, sa weather, as well as sa climate nato is very ideal for industrial plants such as coffee (Davao Region is suitable for industrial plants like coffee because of its fertile soil, weather, and climate),” Matuguinas said.
He said the arabica, robusta, liberica, and excelsa varieties can be planted in Davao Region. Arabica, which should be planted at an elevation of more than 1,000 meters above sea level (MASL), can thrive in some of the region’s highlands. Robusta, liberica, and excelsa, which can be grown at below 800 MASL, can be planted in most parts of the region. Coffee For Peace (CFP) Founder and Chief Executive Officer Joji Pantoja said Davao Region’s edge is in its arabica and robusta coffee beans, which are widely planted by most coffee farmers in Davao Region. These two varieties that are also beginning to shine in the domestic and international coffee market.
Arabica
According to the Bureau of Plant Industry of DA, Arabica is regarded for its flavor and aroma. Mugshots founder and local coffee roaster Beauford Ma said “arabica beans possess a satisfying amount of acidity and tend to have a multi-layered intricacy of flavors and aromas.” ACDI/VOCA Business Development Coordinator Emmanuel Quisol, in an online interview with SunStar Davao, said the region’s arabica coffee beans have the potential to make a mark in both the international and local markets. “One of the strengths of the Arabica coffee beans produced from Davao Region is their consistency in terms of quality. This is illustrated in their performance in the past and most recent results of the Philippine Coffee Quality Competition (PCQC). Entries from Davao Region have consistently landed in the top list,” Quisol said.
This is evident with the recent success of Davao coffee farmers in the Philippine Coffee Quality Competition (PCQC) on May 26, 2021. Five farmers from the Balutakay Coffee Farmers Association (Bacofa) in Bansalan, Davao del Sur were among the top six in the Arabica category of the PCQC 2021.
In the first place is Marites Arellano whose coffee beans scored an average of 85.86. She is followed by Lendilou Loon (85.07), Jastine Mae Dubria (84.71), and Marifel dela Cerna (84.64). Maria Luz Dubria placed sixth with 83.07. Shaun Ong, Head Judge of PCQC 2021, praised the arabica beans from Davao Region, saying that they are among the best he has tasted from the country.
“This year’s winning specialty Arabica coffee of Marites Arellano has an average score of 85.86, which is super close to the preferred international score of 86 for this category. We are getting there, and I won’t be surprised that in the next year or two, we will be seeing coffee entries achieving higher scores,” Quisol said.
This is not the first time our local farmers placed high in the annual PCQC, which is now in its fourth year.
In 2018, Juanita Amaba placed second in the Arabica category after she scored an average of 86.03. Her natural processed beans had notes of caramel, guava, banana, rose, and sweet spice.
In 2019, Marivic Dubria placed first after scoring an 85.36 for her natural processed coffee beans. Her beans had notes of hibiscus, pineapple, lemon, green apple, thyme, basil, and spice. Marivic’s beans were cupped and featured at the Specialty Coffee Expo in Boston, Massachusetts in the United States in 2019.
“Davao Region is now positioning itself as premier source of high-quality specialty Arabica coffee after its series of wins in the PCQC. Undeniably, some of the best-tasting Arabica coffee in the country comes from this region,” Quisol said.
He added that local farmers can take advantage of this emerging status and may expand their production to other areas with higher elevations. At present, you can find arabica plantations in several areas at the foothills of Mount Apo. “Aside from the areas in Davao del Sur that are surrounding Mt. Apo, there are other locations within the region that can be developed into sustainable and environmentally friendly coffee farms such as those in Talaingod in Davao del Norte, some areas in Davao Oriental and in Davao Occidental as well,” Quisol said.
Robusta
When it comes to robusta coffee, despite being widely planted by most coffee farmers in Mindanao, Quisol said Davao Region coffee farmers have yet to tap the opportunities that come with it. Since robusta coffee thrives in lower elevation at below 800 MASL, many of the areas tend to be more dedicated to other crops.
“Opportunities for Robusta coffee in Davao Region has yet to be fully materialized. I think this will require some convincing among farmers who are used to producing other equally important crops such as coconut, cacao, bananas, mangoes, and rice,” Quisol said.
After working with coffee farmers in Mindanao and other parts of the country, Pantoja said they are pushing for the robusta.
“I am entering robusta kasi (because) that is where we have so many farmers. So, gusto kong gawin talagang popular yung robusta para matulungan pa yung mas maraming farmers (I want to also popularize the robusta because we can help more farmers),” Pantoja said.
However, what they are promoting right now in CFP is not simply the pure robusta but the fine robusta.
Ma said when brewed, pure robusta has low to no acidity and usually tastes earthier, woodier, more rubbery, and more bitter than the arabica.
“With regular robusta, you really get a dry throat and if you feel it, your throat feels scratchy because of the salt, and it is really bitter on the back of the tongue,” Byron Pantoja, CFP vice preside for operations and Q Arabica and Robusta grader, said.
Byron added, “with the fine robusta, it is super smooth. You feel like you have a full mouth, a nice heavy coffee but it’s really smooth and it tastes sweet and good.”
Pantoja said CFP is helping several coffee farmers to develop and improve the quality of their robusta coffee. “What we do here in coffee for peace, we blend it. We have the specialty arabica mixed with fine robusta, yun ang pinapopularize namin (we are working on popularizing this),” Pantoja said.
The arabica and fine robusta blend is CFP’s Kapeyapaan 4AM Arabica & Robusta Coffee. Coffee beans are sourced from Mount Apo and are 33.3-percent robusta and 66.6-percent arabica (Catimor varietal).
Pantoja said Koreans are coming to the Philippines looking for fine robusta. Long way to go Despite the recent gains of the local coffee industry, leaders in the industry say there is still room for improvement for our coffee farmers both in quality and quantity. Pantoja said in competing in the international coffee market, there is a need to improve the quality considering that the Philippines does not have large contiguous lands to plant a massive coffee farm.
“We have to take note that the Philippines is a group of islands. Therefore, wala tayong panlaban kay (It is not easy to compete with) Vietnam that could plant sa massive and areas nila. So our only edge is to produce… premium and specialty coffee and fine robusta,” Pantoja said.
Quisol, for his part, said local coffee farmers still struggle to meet local demand. “While the potentials of Philippine coffee are recognized through the PCQC, we also must note that there is a huge demand for Philippine specialty coffee in the local market… Also, for a country that is a net importer of coffee, we cannot meet domestic demand in terms of volume.
And the demand is expected to continuously increase in the coming years,” he said. CFP and ACDI/VOCA are currently working with DA and Department of Industry to improve coffee quality and raise awareness of Philippine coffee.
Demand for local coffee going up but production struggles (Part 2)
Published on June 20, 2021
[Editor’s note: This is the second of a three-part series of “Davao coffee on the rise.” The first part was published on June 13 and can be read here ]
THE local coffee scene has been growing in recent years. Coffee For Peace (CFP) Founder and Chief Executive Officer Joji Pantoja noted how there were only a handful of coffee shops in Davao City in 2006. Fast forward to the present, there are now dozens of coffee shops and cafes in the city where Dabwenyos get their daily caffeine fix.
Even during the pandemic, the local scene has been making strides, albeit smaller — the coffee stalls and mobile coffee shops. In a previous interview with ACDI/VOCA Business Development Coordinator Emmanuel Quisol, he said the rise of mobile coffee shops can be born out of the closure of several cafes and coffee shops.
“This has displaced a lot of our talented baristas. Coffeeholics and regular customers of these shops have to find ways to get the daily caffeine fix. The rise of these mobile coffee shops addresses the gap that the closure of the favorite coffee shops created. This has created a positive impact on the local coffee market as these shops now bring coffee closer to their customers,” Quisol said.
The sight of a barista preparing you a cup of coffee at their mobile coffee shop along the streets of Davao City has become a common scene. Not only are they serving a good cup of coffee but they are also helping more Dabawenyos learn and appreciate coffee.
Quisol said mobile coffee shops are “a good way to allow more people learn, appreciate and taste specialty coffee.”
Pantoja said the growth in the local coffee scene is not only observed in the number of coffee shops opening. She said they have also observed a change in what customers are looking for in a coffee.
“Mukhang nag-iincrease din yung curiosity with the fact that we are teaching them,” she said.
Unlike before, coffee tasting or coffee familiarity is now a common set-up in the local coffee shops allowing more people to learn about coffee.
“Coffee familiarity and coffee tasting educate consumers. Once you educate the consumer, sila na mismo yung sasabi na ‘iba ang lasa ng kapeng ito noh as compared to this coffee?’ (Some of them can now differentiate the taste of one coffee from another),” Pantoja said.
She said Millenials and those aged between 30 to 40 years old tend to look for coffee that would give them different experiences in terms of how it tastes. Another testament to the growth of the local coffee scene, arabica coffee beans produced by farmers from Davao Region has recently made their mark at the Philippine Coffee Quality Competition (PCQC). Since 2018, beans from the region have consistently placed in the Top 6.
This recent success of coffee beans at the PCQC has also driven its demand up.
“We can speak for the experience of the Balutakay Coffee Farmers Association (Bacofa) whom we have provided support through the PhilCafe Project. The cooperative used to have only around 15 to 16 buyers in the past three years, but now, this number has increased to 31,” Quisol said.
Members of Bacofa are consistently in the top six of PCQC. This year, five of its members placed in the top six. The top three this year are also from them. Based on their list, among the buyers of coffee beans from Bacofa are Equilibrium Intertrade Corporation, Gourmet Coffee, Le Festine, Bote Central, La Rosteria, Purge Coffee, Yellow Turtle Coffee, Frog Kaffe, Lick Coffee, Coffee Culture, Coffee for Peace, Pistacia Mindanao, and Kape Coffee Trading.
“It is growing and I see that growing more and more because marami na nagdadaldal about coffee (A lot are now talking about coffee),” Pantoja said.
She added that there is still room for growth for the local coffee industry in Davao City.
“But we want more kase di pa lahat eh. Hindi pa siya saturated kumbaga kaunti palang population ng ating society (We can grow even more because we have not saturated the market yet). So, we need to saturate our whole country na ‘hey people we have good coffee, patronize our own coffee,'” Pantoja said.
Meeting the demands Quisol said with an increase in demand for coffee, local farmers “in Davao Region are not able to meet the demand in terms of volume.”
In terms of consumption, according to German-based data research firm Statista, there is an increasing trend in coffee consumption in the Philippines. Data from the research firm showed that the Philippines consumed around 3.3 million 60-kilogram bags of coffee in 2020. That is roughly around 198,000 metric tons. Data consists of all varieties of coffee beans. According to the Philippines Statistics Authority (PSA), the Philippines produced around 60,000 metric tons (MT) of coffee nationwide in 2019. Davao Region produces 17.8 percent of that total. These are barely enough to cover the consumption of the domestic market.
“For a country that is a net importer of coffee, we cannot meet domestic demand in terms of volume. And the demand is expected to continuously increase in the coming years,” Quisol said.
Production of Arabica coffee beans, which is gaining popularity with more coffee shops offering specialty coffee, are also struggling to meet local demands. Quisol said while they do not have the latest actual figure of coffee production in Davao Region, for the Mount Apo area in Davao del Sur, green arabica coffee beans volume produced per year is estimated to be around 60 to 65 metric tons.
“While the potentials of Philippine coffee are recognized through the PCQC, we also must note that there is a huge demand for Philippine specialty coffee in the local market,” Quisol said, adding that it would not be easy for local farmers to play in the international market if it struggles to meet the local demand.
Quisol said when the demand for Philippine specialty coffee peaks in the local market, farmers could no longer meet the needs of its buyers.
“For instance, some Davao-based farmers have to allocate available volume for each buyer in order to cater to their requirements and to ensure that everyone is served,” he said.
Pantoja said, unlike other coffee-producing countries, the Philippines, in general, does not have large swaths of land where farmers can plant coffee trees. John Paul Matuguinas, Department of Agriculture-Davao (DA-Davao) regional focal person for the High-Value Crop Development Program (HVCDP), said some farmers would opt to plant other crops instead of coffee.
“Naay mga uban nga naa coffee trees pero ginaputol nila gusto na nila mga kanang cavendish kay dako og kita. Pero wala sila kabalo nga mas naay pa dako potential sa pagkakape sa Davao Region.”
(Some farmers already have coffee trees, but they opt to cut it down and plant cavendish banana instead because, for them, you get a higher income from it. However, they are unaware that there is a huge potential for coffee in Davao Region.)
With the local coffee farmers still unable to meet the demand of the domestic market, Quisol said, “The international market is dream that we have yet to fully penetrate.”
This despite farmers has already started exporting their coffee beans outside the country. Quisol said there is a need to improve and streamline existing processes to allow coffee farmers to meet the demands of the domestic and international market.
“As a whole, the entire Philippine coffee industry must standardize its protocols and streamline the processes in exporting of coffee products,” he said.
Pantoja, meanwhile, said while it will be a challenge for the Philippines to increase areas for coffee production due to it being an archipelago, there is still hope for local coffee. She said aside from the volume of production, there is also a need for the local farmers to meet the growing demand for quality coffee.
“Siguro yung mga coffee shops na nagtatanong na wala silang supply, that uses roasted coffee, (Maybe some of those coffee shops that are using roasted coffee and are struggling to look for supply) are the ones looking for a good quality coffee. And we have a problem with that,” she said.
Pantoja said by improving the quality of Philippine coffee, it could compete competitively in the domestic and international market.
“Of course we have to take note that Philippine is a group of islands. Therefore, wala tayong panlaban kay (It would be a challenge to compete with) Vietnam that could plant sa massive land areas nila. So, our only edge is to reproduce…specialty coffee and fine robusta,” she said.
Matuguinas said to address the volume and quality gap, the private and public sector are coming together to help the industry.
Private, public sector work together to improve coffee production, quality (Part 3)
Published on June 28, 2021
Editor’s note: This is the last part of the Davao Coffee Rising series.
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the country produced a total of 60,043.88 MT in 2019. Data from the Department of Agriculture (DA) showed the Philippines is only 32.40 percent self-sufficient in its coffee production. The country imports 67 percent of its coffee. Under the Philippine Coffee Industry Roadmap 2017-2022, the Philippine government targets to increase coffee production in the country to 214,626 metric tons by 2022. However, based on current trends, coffee production in the Philippines remains to be below the target set in the roadmap.
For 2019, the target production was at 68,135 MT. However, based on PSA data, only 60,043.88 MT was produced in the country.
For 2020, around 95,389 MT was targeted for the industry. However, based on the preliminary data of the Major Non-Food and Industrial Crops Quarterly Bulletin of PSA, only 60,636.15 MT was produced. Of this number, 10,826.26 MT were produced in Davao Region. Emmanuel Quisol, ACDI/VOCA Business Development Coordinator, said farmers in Davao Region are not able to meet the demands on the market in terms of volume since there are lot of coffee buyers who run after limited volume of supply.
“For example, when the demand for Philippine specialty coffee peaks in the local market, our farmers could no longer meet the needs of our buyers. For instance, some Davao-based farmers have to allocate available volume for each buyer in order to cater to their requirements and to ensure that everyone is served.”
Coffee For Peace (CFP) Founder and CEO Joji Pantoja have also said earlier that, unlike other coffee-producing nations, the Philippines, in general, does not have large contiguous lands to allow for massive production of coffee.
John Paul Matuguinas, Department of Agriculture-Davao (DA-Davao) regional focal person for the High Value Crop Development Program (HVCDP), also said some farmers would opt to plant other crops instead of coffee because it either grows faster or allows farmers to earn more faster.
“Naay mga uban nga naa coffee trees pero ginaputol nila gusto na nila mga kanang cavendish kay dako og kita. Pero wala sila kabalo nga mas naay pa dako potential sa pagkakape sa Davao Region (There are farmers who cut the coffee trees and plant cavendish instead because they bet bigger profits. However, they are not aware of the real potential coffee),” Matuguinas said.
Pantoja said since it will not be easy to increase production, local farmers could also focus on the quality of their coffee beans. But Matuguinas said the supply side of the industry also struggles to meet the quality that some on the demand side look for.
“Ang challenges sa atoang farmers sa Davao Region is particulary on…information sa quality conciousness… Dili kaayo sila concious sa quality sa ilahang kape (One of the challenge of our local farmers is their quality counciousness. They are not concious about the quality of their coffee),” he said.
Pantoja and Quisol also stated that another factor that prevents local farmers from producing quality coffee is the lack of decent post-harvest facilities.
“One of the challenges our local coffee farmers are access to modern harvest and post-harvest facilities. These include drying beds, warehouses (there was one built for BACOFA but was damaged due to the series of earthquakes in 2019), additional cupping laboratories (we have a few, but more laboratories are welcome), among others,” Quisol said in an online interview.
To allow for better quality and improved coffee production, the private and public sector are providing inputs to our local coffee farmers.
Government response
Matuguinas said the agency, through its HVCDP, is committed to helping boost the production of the coffee industry and at the same time, ensure quality coffee beans.
“Ang gina-provide sa DA is in terms of production, naga hatag ta og planting materials para mas ma-expand pa atong mga coffee areas kay mao pud na atoang goal (We provide farmers with
planting materials to allow the expansion of coffee areas, which is part of our goals),” he said. Mataguinas said they also provide farmers with fertilizers, pruning shears, and pruning saws.
Farmers are also being trained on how to care for the coffee trees.
“If naa sila existing nga coffee trees, naa pud ta’y rejuvenation training para maka bata og balik ang ilang kape (If the farmers have existing non-bearing coffee trees, we provide them training on how to rejuvenate those trees so it will bear again),” Matuguinas said.
Marites Arellano, whose coffee beans placed first in the Arabica Category of the 2021 Philippine Coffee Quality Competition (PCQC), was among the beneficiaries of the Coffee Rejuvenation Project. In a press statement, under the program, farmers are given close release fertilizer, pruning shears and pruning saw for its coffee rejuvenation program and post-harvest and processing facilities such as tramline system, dryers, a roasting facility, hauling truck, and mini-storage.
Matuguinas said they also provide coffee farmers associations with post-harvest equipment and other facilities for coffee to consolidate their produce. He added that they are not only focused on providing farmers with planting materials and post-harvest facilities, they are also working on helping them improve the quality of their coffee beans.
“Isa sa main thrusts and aim ni DA karon is to educate coffee farmers to be more conscious sa quality (One of our main thrusts and aim right now is educating the farmers to be more conscious with their quality),” Matuguinas said, adding that one of the things they do is assessing the post-harvest process of the farmers.
Private sector response Those in the private sector are also implementing programs or are working with farmers to improve the quality of their coffee and increase the yield of their plantations. ACDI/VOCA, a non-profit organization, is currently working with coffee farmers through the PhilCAFE Project, which is funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). “We aim to increase production of conventional and specialty coffee, boost the country’s coffee exports, and build the capacity and expand service provision of the coffee value chain,” Quisol said.
He said the project targets to strengthen the capacities of at least 13,700 coffee farmers in the Philippines, expand services support to 350 coffee value chain players, increase by 50 percent the country’s coffee production, and increase coffee exports ten-fold. Quisol said PhilCAFE facilitates the expansion of extension services to increase the adoption of good agricultural practices (GAP) and improve on-farm technologies in coffee production.
“In addition to GAP, we also provide assistance in farm management and establishment of sustainable delivery services for extension. We train producer organization leaders, local government technicians, coffee mentors, and members of coffee-producing cooperatives and communities on GAP who cascade these training to members of their cooperatives and other association members,” he said.
Among the farmers ACDI/VOCA has helped are the members of the Balutakay Coffee Farmers Association (Bacofa) in Bansalan, Davao del Sur. In the PCQC 2021, five of the top six coffee beans under the Arabica category are produced by farmers of Bacofa, of which Arellano is also part.
In a statement from ACDI/VOCA, Arellano shared that in producing quality beans, she implemented the good agricultural practices (GAP) she had learned during a Coffee Quality Institute training organized by PhilCAFE. One of ACDI/VOCA’s earlier beneficiaries is Marivic Dubria, who is currently the chairperson of Bacofa. In 2019, she won the Philippines Coffee Quality Competition in the Arabica category.
Following her win, she became one of the delegates that represented the Philippines in the 2019 Specialty Coffee Expo in Boston, US. “PhilCAFE project also supports the establishment of nurseries that produce high-quality seedlings and will strengthen producer access to retail input agents while increasing the capacity of producer organizations as a critical link in the coffee value chain,” Quisol said.
Coffee, a vehicle for peace
Among the earlier movers of the local coffee industry in Davao Region is Coffee for Peace. The social enterprise has been working with coffee farmers and the government to not only help improve the coffee industry but also promote peace.
“When we were doing our peace building work in Maguindanao, Basilan, and Sulu. I noticed that even the Muslim people, the Indigenous people, and the Christians like coffee,” she said.
She said each cultural community has a distinct way of serving coffee to their guests.
“Na surprise [ako] because when we were with the Tausug or with the Maguindanao, they serve us their coffee yung niluto sa palayok, may asukal na nga lang pero masarap pa rin. Sa Bagobo-Tagabawa naman yung coffee nila may halong mais (I was quite surprised because when we visited the Tausug or when we were with the Maguindanao, they served us their version of coffee that was brewed in a clay pot. It was served with sugar and tasted good. Meanwhile, the Bagobo-Tagabawa mixed theirs with corn),” Pantoja said.
She said coffee is common among different people of different communities and serves as a medium for people to converse with one another. Pantoja added,
“This cup [of coffee] can make people sit [down], converse, and dialogue… Whatever conflict they have can be settled.”
As it promotes peace through coffee, it was able to help improve the coffee quality and production in the communities it was working with Pantoja said when they started working with some of the communities, there was definitely a gap in how they process their beans. She said when they visited one of their partner communities in 2006 or 2007, they noticed that there was a problem with the coffee beans that were being produced. The farmers then were still following old practices to produce their beans.
“Yung traditional style nila ng preparation ng coffee hindi papasa sa international standards (The traditional way they prepare or process coffee would not pass international standards),” Pantoja said.
She studied the good agricultural practices of other coffee-producing countries and shared them with the farmers. Pantoja recalled that when their first community passed the standards set by the international market, they exported around 600 kilograms of coffee beans to Canada. It was well received and the buyer requested more.
“They want more but I was honest to them na (that) we can only produce 2 tons to 10 tons, not a truckload, 38 tons di namin kaya (We cannot produce 38 tons of coffee beans),” she said.
Hence, Coffee for Peace began working with the government to reach out to more farmers. “Para makapag train ng maraming farmers, kailangan ko ng collaboration with government (I need to collaborate with the government to train more farmers),” she said. Pantoja added that by also partnering with the government, they will be able to provide the needed equipment for the farmers.
Coffee for Peace trains its partners with good agricultural practices and coffee processing. Eventually, the collaboration with government agencies like the Department of Trade and Industry, helped improve the production and quality of the coffee beans of the community partners. She said the communities they have helped can now supply at least 32,000 kilograms (kg), which is an improvement from only 2,000kg when they started.
Right now, they are working with farmers at the foot of Mt. Apo, Bacofa included. They are currently working with farmers who are part of the Obo Manuvu. They are also set to work with another community in the Paquibato district in Davao City.
It is through these partnerships between public and private sectors that allows the coffee farmers to keep up with the changes and enhance the quality of the beans it produces. Quisol said by working on the gaps in the supply side, the coffee farmers and the beans they produce will be competitive in the international market and address the needs of the domestic market.
“To produce high-quality coffee, it requires patience, endurance, discipline, and diligence. The farmers must employ GAP in the entire coffee production process (seedlings, farm management, harvest, and post-harvest production),” he said.
He said this may sound difficult to achieve, but once the farmers have adopted all these traits, the results are phenomenal.
“Based on our experience in the field, those who religiously followed our recommended practices and protocols emerged as winners not only in the PCQC, but also in attracting buyers for their products,” Quisol said.