The many fruits that are abundant in the Philippines have found their way to markets in many parts of the world. Frequent travelers know that only too well, and they too have enjoyed bananas from Davao, sweet yellow mangoes from Guimaras, and recently, durian from Davao – while they were having breakfast in Japan, the U.S., China and other countries around the world.
The process that gets the fruits from the Philippines to other countries is called exportation. There are many processes that a fruit product has to go through to reach the tables of consumers in foreign lands. That’s because the products need to comply with the different standards required by the international markets.
The Department of Agriculture’s (DA) Bureau of Plant Industry - National Plant Quarantine Services Division (BPI-NPQSD) is responsible for overseeing that the protocols and standards are followed by growers, traders, and packers to ensure quality products that are safe to consume.
A young vendor hands a bunch of bananas supply in a local market in Davao City as it remains abundant amid the El Niño. (MB File photo/Keith Bacongco)
Different fruits follow different protocols. For bananas, one of the Philippines’ top fruit exports, the process leading to exportation begins when it is harvested.
According to the DA’s Memorandum No. 5, series of 2019, also known as the “Revised protocol for the export of fresh banana,” bananas must be harvested in a ‘hard green state,’ even before they’re ripe, or turning yellow. Bananas that are found with any damage or imperfection are not included in the shipment.
Fruits are harvested much earlier to make sure that when they arrive at their final destination they will be in the right kind of ripe condition.
The memorandum noted that bananas are then sent to licensed packing facilities where they are de-handed, which is the process of removing the individual bananas from their peel (piling in Filipino), then washed with chlorinated water, or other Fertilizer and Pesticide Authority (FPA) approved plant protection products.
After cleaning, the memorandum stated that the next step is the packing of bananas into boxes or containers which bear the license number of the packing facility and the exporter. It also shows the registration code of the grower, the date of packaging, its destination, and any other information required by the destination country. However, there are some countries which require other procedures prior to acceptance, according to BPI-NPQSD’s Export section.
ORGANIC BANANAS - A child helps in displaying native bananas from Sablan, Benguet called "Bongkisan" at the wangal agro trade fair in la Trinidad, Benguet. These native variety of bananas had been locally grown in the area with price range lower than those coming from other neighboring provinces. (MB File photo/Larry P. Fabian)
Before the bananas are given the green light for export, the memorandum iterates that the fruits must pass a final BPI inspection under the direction and supervision of BPI-NPQSD inspectors. During the inspection, a sample equivalent to two percent of the total number of containers are randomly selected by the bureau for inspection for quarantine pests. If they find a trace of even one pest, the Plant Quarantine Officer conducting the inspection denies the issuance of a ‘Phytosanitary Certificate,’ to the whole shipment – a required document that certifies that the products are pest-free and safe to consume.
Bananas and other fruit products must be safeguarded from exposure to pests and pesticides from planting through the entire post-harvest process, which includes export.
The location where the bananas were grown must also be identified, and from when it was transported from the place of production to the packing facilities.
Bananas and pineapples are the country’s top agricultural exports aside from coconut oil and other coconut products, a report from the DA in 2022 said.
The report also cited data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showing that in 2019 alone, Philippine banana exports reached $1.95 billion, $1.64 billion in 2020, and around $920 million from Jan. to Oct. 2021, while pineapple products amounted to more than $300 million in 2021.
Those interested to start exporting produce must first undergo the licensing procedure of the BPI and obtain a License to Operate (LTO) as an exporter, as export licensing is necessary to ensure compliance with the set international standards, bilateral agreements, and local standards.
Once they become licensed exporters, they must then “source their approved exportable commodities from a Licensed Packing facility and Registered Farms from the BPI.”
The guidelines for its accreditation process for exporters, traders, growers, and packing facilities are implemented under BPI Memorandum Order No. 40 series of 2012.
BPI-NPQSD explained that the process of exportation for commercial and non-commercial volumes must be filed at least 48 hours before the departure date for the completion of the export procedure.
Allowing products to stay much longer risks going past their ‘best before’ date.
To ensure their acceptability to their destinations, products waiting to be certified for export are based on the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) standards system, which according to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), is “the only international standard-setting organization for plant health that is recognized by the World Trade Organization (WTO) under the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (the SPS Agreement).” (Pancho Parian)