The ongoing upward trend of agri-tourism is boosting the strawberry industry of Benguet Province as better conditions result in more prospects for the local farmers and enterprising residents.

Nida Organo, municipal agriculture officer of La Trinidad, the provincial capital, said data from the Registry System of Basic Services in Agriculture (RSBSA) of the Department of Agriculture (DA) shows that there were 1,320 strawberry farmers last year compared to only 720 in 2023.

The production also slightly increased to 1,449 metric tons in 2024 compared to the 1,188 in 2023.

“Mas dumadami ang gustong magtanim ng strawberries kasi maganda ang negosyo (More are engaging in strawberry production with the good economic prospects that it is showing),” Organo said.

The strawberry growers can engage in plain agriculture and sell the fresh red berries or go into tourism-related activities such as strawberry picking or value-adding by processing the fresh strawberries.

Organo expressed gratitude to the local government and the Benguet State University that owns most of the properties at the capital town for reserving the “Swamp” or the “Strawberry Farm” for the purpose of producing strawberries, ensuring the sustainability of production and activities and the town’s tag as the top producer of strawberries in the country.

Consistently good pricing

Clara Lucio, a sales lady at a strawberry farm, said the selling price of strawberries never drops with the high demand for the product.

She said that during the peak season, a kilo of fresh strawberries commands prices ranging from PHP400 to PHP600, and slightly drops to PHP200 to PHP300 during the off-peak season.

“If you are lucky and you are able to sell all your fresh strawberries without any wastage due to the number of days, you will surely have sufficient income. However, the berries are highly perishable, which causes the drop in prices but we have buyers for the older ones, which are processed into jam, preserves, or even wine,” she explained in Ilocano.

Lucio said that during the peak of the tourism season from December to February and the summer months, the strawberry picking experience is also a good source of income.

“The ones with gardens here are lucky because a kilo of personally picked strawberries sometimes skyrocket to PHP1,000,” Lucio shared.

Domino effect

Valred Olsim, tourism officer of La Trinidad, said from the simple growing of strawberries emerged the picking experience which has grown into a popular tourist attraction.

“Our mass tourism is still at the Strawberry Farm,” Olsim said in an exclusive interview.

He said the town receives around 700,000 to 800,000 tourists annually, especially during the fourth quarter and first quarter of the year.

“Everybody wants to experience strawberry picking and they are willing to pay the price just to be able to pick their choice of strawberries straight from the plants,” Olsim said.

He said pickers pay a higher price per kilogram of the berries they picked compared to just buying them at the stalls.

“The experience is an added premium and it has become more popular with the numerous posts of persons on social media –doing the strawberry picking themselves,” he said.

Another industry that has emerged from strawberry production is the processing of berries into wine, jam and preserves, vinegar, the “taho” soap, facial and beauty products and recently, dried strawberries.

“A lot of economic activities emanated from the production of strawberries and we are glad it is happening, that is why we are preserving our identity as the top producer of strawberry by pursing the Strawberry Festival where the giant strawberry cakes are also featured,” Olsim said. (PNA)