BCDA taps MPIC, French firm for study on Clark international food market

MANILA, Philippines -  The Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA) has teamed up with infrastructure conglomerate Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC) and French firm Semmaris for a feasibility study on the development of an international food market in New Clark City.

BCDA said the international food market would connect buyers and sellers of food and agriculture products both locally and in the Asian region.

The project is expected to benefit mostly local farmers as it will provide direct market access for them to sell their goods at higher prices, thereby increasing their income.

With the agreement, MPIC and Semmaris will conduct a feasibility study to evaluate and determine the viability of the project.

BCDA said MPIC and Semmaris would have the option to submit a proposal to implement the project upon completion of the study.

French Ambassador Thierry Mathou said the project would be useful not only for Clark, but also for the whole region once operational.

“We are in the first step, and I’m confident that in the next couple of years we will be able to inaugurate the first, wholesale market in Asia here in the Philippines, with the expertise of Semmaris in France,” Mathou said.

The Rungis International Market in Paris, operated and managed by Semmaris, is the first fresh wholesale market in the world and the largest wholesale food market globally.

“We look forward to moving this project ahead and hopefully it will translate into a commercial venture with BCDA and Semmaris – and of course with the support of the French government,” MPIC chair Manuel Pangilinan said.

New Clark City (formerly Clark Green City) in Tarlac is a new metropolis that will rise within the Clark Special Economic Zone.