Blending Businesses with Kalinga Blend

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Launching of Kalinga Blend (photo taken in 2008)

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uploaded by ecowarrior

BAGUIO CITY, PHILIPPINES - Few of life’s simple pleasures can be as comforting and relaxing as having a sip of brewed coffee while entertaining creative ideas or reminiscing wonderful moments.

As hordes of people around the world start their day with the invigorating taste and aroma of coffee and a great number of them prefer it black, It’s good to note that here in the Philippines comes one of the best coffee blend.

Traditionally, tribal leaders and respected elders of the Cordillera gather around a “dap-ay” which is considered as the village hall to make important decisions and coffee is one important element that keeps these tribal folks sharp and decisive.

The aromatic Arabica coffee grows in the upland provinces like Benguet, Ifugao and Mountain Province while Robusta and Excelsa varieties are grown abundantly in low lying areas of Kalinga and Apayao.

Our Tribe Food Products, a DTI registered enterprise based in Tabuk City manufactures the Kalinga Blend which consists of roasted, ground and blended coffee of the Arabica, Excelsa and Robusta variety.

These blended coffee are now packed in air tight aluminum foils, labeled in boxes and are available in local coffee shops and distributed to local buyers.

The Kalinga Blend came into the picture amidst the growing number of coffee processors when entrepreneur Grace Agtina observed a shortage of processed coffee products during the lean months when coffee is not in season.

Taking that situation as an opportunity, Ms Agtina who finished her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration invested in coffee processing equipments, packaging materials and endeavored to venture into a business which is very competitive.

Noting the difficulties of farmers in direct selling and how prices are dictated by middlemen who sell coffee beans to multi-national companies, Agtina joined the advocacy for value-adding and processing conducted by the Department of Trade and Industry as a self-help engagement.

To keep up with the demands of her growing enterprise, Agtina requested the use of an idle coffee roasting machine owned by the Local Government of Tabuk and through the intervention of the Department of Trade and Industry-Kalinga, Agtina was saved from a much needed expense of more than 300,000 pesos.

Agtina’s initial operation using the borrowed coffee roasting machine was facilitated by the Department of Science and technology (DOST) thus helping her push through with the processing of roasted coffee that made her beat the 2007 product launching.

The DTI-Kalinga with the support of its regional office based in Baguio City also helped promote and facilitate the marketing of Kalinga Blend as it did with other coffee products such as the Kalinga Brew, Terraces Brew and Sagada Coffee in local and regional trade fairs such as the IMPAKABSAT.

During her product launching in June 16, 2007 which coincided with the 57th foundation anniversary of Tabuk as a municipality and the Patawid Agro-industrial Fair and Exhibit, Agtina showcased the Kalinga Blend with a catchy line “Coffee is a drink that can warm you, get ideas flowing and give you a sense of security. It is invigorating in the morning, a friend in the afternoon, and is a peaceful way to end your day”.  Thus, the phrase printed in the firm’s product packaging became the guiding principle of Kalinga Blend.

Since Coffee is the identified regional model One-Town-One-Product (OTOP) of the Cordillera, the DTI has been promoting said product since 2006 not only through fairs and market encounters but also in its promotional collaterals and website like the www.otopphilippines.gov.ph.

Kalinga Blend as an enterprise also provides coffee processing and marketing services to farmers in the province so that they will be relieved from the usual burden of going to the neighboring provinces of Cagayan and Isabela to sell their produce.

Today, Kalinga Blend produces about 4000 packs of 400gms and 200gms content per pack of roasted ground coffee per month with its already mechanized production operation. It now employs 6 full time workers and 2 part time students.

            The firm was also issued a BFAD License to Operate (LTO) in 2008 which made the product eligible to be sold nationwide and in foreign markets as well. Agtina’s coffee venture initially generated a total sales of about P2Million in her start-up year and projects optimism to reach a P3Million mark for 2009.

As for other coffee growers and manufacturers in the upland region of Cordillera, a bright future in the highlands is seen as continuing research and development is being undertaken by functional agencies spearheaded by Thomas Killip,  the Presidential Assistant for the Cordillera. Art Tibaldo