The Department of Trade and Industry and the Metro Bacolod Chamber of Commerce and Industry held the Negros Agribusiness Expo 2024 at the event center, Atrium of SM City Bacolod recently. DTI OIC Chief Division Chief Engiemar Tupas said, “I would like to commend the Metro Bacolod Chamber of Commerce and Industry for initiating this activity and collaborating with us, for it would entice entrepreneurs and would-be entrepreneurs to engage in agribusiness.” Agriculture was one of the hardest hit industries during the COVID pandemic and based on the data, it expanded by only 0.
6 % in 2022, and grew faster at 1.2 percent in 2023, driven by higher poultry and livestock production, increased fruit harvest, and record rice output. However, these data are low compared to pre-pandemic records.
The agribusiness industry is one of the priority industries of the DTI, aside from coffee, cacao, and high-value coconut products, among others. We, in the Department of Trade and Industry, are more than glad to assist the industry because we want to see the sector grow. We have invited food processors, farm inputs suppliers, manufacturers of farm machinery and equipment, and other firms engaging in agribusiness to participate in this activity so we could link them up with each other or with other clients who would need their products/ produce.
Seminars and training to be conducted in this venue are all related to agribusiness and also to capacitate interested individuals. “We will be condu.