PCA head attends international coconut meet

Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) Administration Danilo M. Coronacion flew to Vietnam to discuss relevant and pressing issues with industry counterparts at the 38th meeting held in Ho Chi Minh City last July 17 to 20.

The Cocotech meeting is an annual gathering organized by the Asian and Pacific Coconut Community or APCC. The APCC is an independent regional intergovernmental organization consisting of 13 member countries that include the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Papua New Guinea, Federated States of Micronesia, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Samoa, Fiji and India.

Established in 1969, the APCC’s mandate is to promote, coordinate and harmonize activities in the coconut industry which sustain the lives of millions of coconut farmers as well as those engaged in the processing of coconuts.

Hosted by Vietnam, this year’s meeting was anchored on the theme "Health and Wealth From the Coconut". Among the topics discussed were the strengthening of the coconut industry’s foundation through increased farmers’ income, harnessing research and development for sustainable coconut production, product and market development, and improving farmers’ income through partnering of stakeholders.

Coronacion was accompanied by Gerardo Santos of the PCA’s Zamboanga Research Center, Dr. Rolendio Palomar of the PCA’s ZRC-coconut wood utilization division and Romulo Amrancon of the PCA’s Coconut Extension Training Center.

Santos spoke on the country’s experience in the promotion of coconut-based farming system.