TAGBILARAN CITY, December 22 (PIA)--Times are changing.
Ordinarily, farmers sell their produce at the markets.
In Bohol however, farm producers who are getting to the malls, is now becoming a trend.
Dairy Box, a one stop shop for carabao-based products produced by various cooperative groups in Bohol opened its second store in Bohol right at the ground floor of Island City Mall in Tagbilaran City.
Earlier, the Bohol Bee Farm also buzzed its way to success when it established its hove of activity, also at the Island City Mall, and now in at least three more malls in the Visayas.
Among the major PCC projects is an animal dispersal program that would allow farmers to get hold of pure breed buffalos while the center also trains farmers to gather milk from their carabaos.
But without a clear market tie-up, the program refused to take off.
Thus, the Dairy Box.
The Dairy Box was conceptualized to provide a direct market venue for carabao dairy producers, the Dairy Box business model accordingly first appeared at the Philippine Carabao Center in Muñoz Nueva Ecija following a business model developed by the Business development and Commercialization Unit of the PCC, according to PCC information Officer Leinefe Libres.
Earlier, the PCC found out that among the reasons why farmers refuse to adopt the carabao milking industry was due to the absence of markets.
A pure breed carabao, according to Boholano dairy farmer adopter 50 year-old Diomedes Boyles nets between five to six liters daily, while the carabao he milks gives him between three to four liters daily.
PCC Center director Dr. Caro Salces said their farmer adopters harvest an average of 300 liters every day, while the PCC which also maintains a milking ranch also produces about 300 liters a day.
The PCC buys the carabao milk at P50.00 a liter and Dr Salces revealed proposals to increase the buying price for native carabao milk in the next year.
The carabao milk is then processed into milk bars, which a cooperative in Benliw Ubay makes for the PCC, Department of Education, Department of Social Welfare and Development and the Province of Bohol implements in its anti-malnutrition drive billed as Gatas Para sa Eskwelahan.
The top seller however is the chocobao, confesses Guillerma Abay-abay.
Chocobao is a chilled chocolate flavored carabao milk, which is sold as refreshment and is excellent with puto cheese, a cheese cake which uses a liter of carabao milk to a kilo of flour, Abayabay added.
There is also pure buffalo milk in mango flavor, ice cream, torta, yema, cheese, yoghurt, and the Itallian favorite mozzarella which is now hitting test markets.
The overall impact is good and one outlet in Bohol even averages P10,000 a day, Abay-abay volunteered the information.
With carabao dairy now becoming viable, the need to open up its markets pop, and so the need for the mall shop, a PCC official stressed.
The ICM Dairy Box of the Bohol Dairy is the third PCC inspired carabao milk store in the country.
Governor Edgar Chatto, Dr Caro Salces, Bohol Dairy Chairman Roger Damaerio, City mayor John Geesnall Yap's representative Phileos Blanco, Administrator Mitchell John Boiser and dairy farmers cut the ceremonial ribbon symbolizing the formal operation of the ICM stall.
The country's second Dairy Box rose in Tambo-an Carmen, at the vicinity of the Chocolate Hills, although, a pasalubong center and DairyBox concept has been operating at the PCC at the Ubay Stock Farm in Lomangog Ubay. (rahc/PIA-7/Bohol)
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