Fernandez mulls exporting own ‘suka’ brand

Professional basketball veteran Ramon Fernandez has ventured into the promising vinegar business with the introduction of his own vinegar brand "Suka ni Tisoy."

Fernandez has set up his vinegar bottling plant in the southern town of Argao, which has the capacity to produce at least 100 cases a week.

"The demand is very strong. In fact, I’m working on papers to allow an export distribution of this product initially in California," said Fernandez in an interview with The Freeman.

Fernandez is taking advantage of the increasing number of consumers who are "health conscious" that are now demanding for pure vinegar products in the market.

With an initial investment of P100,000, this well-known basketball icon in the Philippines is now putting his attention to take advantage of the profitable and favorite culinary aid of Pinoys—the vinegar.

For his export plans, Fernandez will tap the huge number of Filipinos residing and working in other countries, especially in the United States.

He hopes to start his vinegar export in the next three months, after his company called Ferkin Global Unlimited completes the international food requirements, particularly in entering the US market.

In the domestic distribution, the brand went through several testing processes from the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), and the Bureau of Food and Drugs (BFAD), he assured.

The brand "Suka ni Tisoy" which is seen to snatch a sizable market share of other locally-made vinegar products, is Fernandez’s special personal concoction of 100 percent pure coconut vinegar and all-natural spices with no water, no added sugar, and no preservatives, "absolutely chemical-free" he vowed.

He said naturally fermented vinegar contains vitamins and mineral like Beta-carotene, calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorous, potassium and sodium. "It is very high in potassium and alkalinizing minerals and contains pro-biotic flora, which is helpful in the digestion process," he added.

Initially introduced in Cebu market last December 2006, Fernandez said his plant in Argao can produce a nationwide demand, getting its sources from wide coconut plantation in the Southern part of Cebu.

"We have enough coconut plantations in Cebu. This could sustain the increasing demand of my vinegar brand," Fernandez said.

Fernandez, whose family roots came from Maasin City, in Southern Leyte, is also planning to tap hundreds of hectares of coconut plantation in province, once the domestic and export distributions grow significantly.

He said this venture is not only profitable to his company, but it is also bound to provide livelihood opportunities to coconut nectar gatherers in rural towns, specifically in Argao.

At present, the product is available in some commercial establishments such as CBE Store of Lacto Pafi in Guadalupe, all Tong’s Native Restaurant outlets, Sideline Garden Restaurants, among others.

Soon, this new vinegar brand will be available in the shelves of huge supermarket store chains and convenience store outlets in Cebu, as well as in other parts of the country, Fernandez said.