Icy does it: Off-grid ice plants a boon to far-flung fishing communities


AVANT GARDENER

Farming is not a get rich quick scheme

Do we know why despite being an archipelago, our locally caught fish can be prohibitively expensive despite small fishers being one of the poorest sectors of Philippine society? It comes down to the amount of effort needed to get the fish from the fisher’s boat to the consumer’s plate. Interestingly, something as simple yet woefully lacking such as an ice plant can help raise the quality of fish caught and lower market prices as well.

Shalom Floro, who goes by the name Twinkle, is a third-generation fishmonger who specializes in reef fin fish, specifically “fish that’s wild-caught every day from the islands of Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi Tawi.” This column is an excerpt of her talk at WOFEX 2024.

Floro revealed that in Mindanao, the fishing industry is connected. Everyone knows everyone. The fish are funneled through brokers who specialize in different varieties. The fish are usually consolidated in Zamboanga City before being transported to other parts of Mindanao, even as far as Cagayan de Oro City nine hours away. This was how it’s always been done, and the system worked… until it didn’t. 

“During the pandemic, we had to reject almost 40 trucks a day — that’s around five tons — because the quality was so poor,” she said, switching between English and Tagalog. “We asked the dispatchers why so many fish were getting bruised. They said it was because the water was too warm.”

Around 15 years ago, the sea’s ambient temperature was around 24 degrees Celcius. Now, it’s around 45. “So if you ask fishermen if climate change is real, they’ll tell you themselves that it is,” Floro said. “So now, when the fish arrive, half of them are spoiled.”

Floro began visiting fishing communities in Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi Tawi to understand the root of the problem. She uncovered two things: inadequate handling and a lack of infrastructure. “The handling was a big gap,” she said. “How we handle fish has not changed in 40 years. It’s been the same process ever since my lola started in 1981.”

This meant that only 20 percent of what was harvested every day was fit for human consumption. She came across data from nonprofit ocean conservation organization Oceana published in 2022 that stated that 80 percent of Philippine fisheries output goes to waste, 46 percent from the lack of cold chain technology, and 38 percent from poor processing techniques.

“Twelve percent is inadequate packaging and storing techniques and only three percent is from changes in supply and demand,” she said. “Supply and demand pricing had nothing to do with the losses of fishermen. It was something else that was expediting their losses.”

In 2022-23, with the help of Bangsamoro Director-Fisheries Services General Pendatun Patarasa, Floro piloted a series of off-grid ice plants positioned in remote fishing areas, such as inside a camp for displaced people from Lanao located along Liguasan Marsh where fishers caught tilapia and blue shrimp. 

The ice plants were powered by lithium-ion phosphate batteries and could produce one ton of ice a day. It can be operated by a grade three student, the average highest educational attainment in the community. 

“Instead of the fishermen going out for three hours to buy ice, they could make it in their community. Reduce the carbon footprint, reduce the harvest losses, and… reduce the cost of ice (which before the ice plant, was eight pesos per kilo).”

The fishers were advised to pack their catch with a ratio of one kilo of ice to one kilo of fish and one liter of water to preserve freshness. “We taught the community how to pack properly, how to ice properly, and how to transport properly.”

Floro began connecting fishers directly to buyers, who bought the fish at higher prices because of their freshness. “From ₱40, after one year, they’re still selling at between ₱140 to ₱180 per kilo,” she said.

The lives of the fishers have changed drastically. One was able to install a bathroom inside his home. Another bought a motorcycle. 

“We realized that such a small thing like ice for a fisherman is such a big deal when it comes to their cash flow and bottom line. And younger people started being more interested in [fishing] because it made money.”

Floro emphasizes that for programs like this to work, “technology needs to exist at the level of [a community’s] culture and within their confidence and capacity… and protecting fishermen [starts with] being on the ground.”

The group has plans to complete an off-grid cold chain facility that includes an ice plant, a cold storage area, and sorting and packing facilities.

She added that having an ice plant nearby meant that fishing communities were able to start shipping sashimi-grade fish. “When… ice is accessible for every shipment, it can increase quality,” Floro said. “It’s competitive, even from an international standpoint.”