Philippines' Iloilo prepares to host 8th national mango congress

The Iloilo Provincial Agriculture Office is preparing to host the 8th National Mango Congress that will be held on May 17-19.

Iloilo Provincial Agriculture Office Zafiro Palabrica said their hosting of the congress that will be attended by mango growers from all over the country as well as the different municipal agriculture officers could hopefully highlight the mango production of the province.

He said that Iloilo province is also producing good quality mangoes similar to that of the nearby Guimaras that is noted to have "the sweetest mango in the world." Iloilo Provincial Agriculture Crops Division Chief Reynaldo M. Osano said that in fact the mango trees planted in Guimaras province must have originally come from Iloilo.

However, the presence of the National Mango Research Center in Guimaras has really been a big help to the mango producers of the island province who are now able to export their produce even to the United States.

Osano said that for the province of Iloilo, which has about 237,864 mango trees planted with 83 per cent of it considered to be bearing and 16 per cent as non-bearing trees. There is also an ongoing research study by the University of the Philippines in Los Banos (UPLB) on its carabao mango.

He said the carabao mango being produced in the municipalities of Leon, Cabatuan, Tubungan, Alimodian, Tigbauan, Ajuy, Barotac Viejo and Anilao have also potential market because of its sweetness that there is a need to promote it, and one way to do it is to host the National Mango Congress.

Osano said the study of the UPLB particularly the Qualitative and Quantitative Loss Assessment could help mango growers here adopt strategies to lessen damages they usually incur in the process.

He further said that the province has a new technology now on how to produce off-season mangoes through the help of the National Mango Research Center.

The hosting of the National Mango Congress has also been timed with the Manggahan Festival of Guimaras this coming May 19, so that participants can witness it during their field trip there.

Source