Coconut farmers in three municipalities in Central Visayas will benefit from three processing facilities for copra and virgin coconut oil production scheduled to be built in their respective localities, an official said on Wednesday.

Engineer Rhea Ocay, project development officer of the Philippine Coconut Authority in Central Visayas (PCA-7), said the facilities would be constructed by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) in the towns of Corella and Mabini in Bohol province and Zamboangita in Negros Oriental province.

Ocay, also the focal person of the Coconut Farmers Industry Development Plan (CFIDP), said the beneficiaries will be Bohol Prime Movers Cooperative in Corella, the Aguipo Coconut Farmers Cooperative in Mabini, and the Zamboanguita Small Coconut Farmers Cooperative in Zamboanguita.

“We are looking forward to a program wherein we will not only be giving inputs to our coconut-based cooperatives but make them sustainable cooperatives and entrepreneurs through the shared processing facilities,” Ocay said.

Each facility costs PHP26 million and will be bankrolled through the Coconut Farmers and Industry Trust Fund under the CFIDP.

“The aim of this project is to bolster the productivity of the farmers in the coconut industry not only in this region but in the entire country,” she added.

Ocay added that the facility to be built in Bohol is for the processing of coconut virgin oil while the one in Negros Oriental is for white copra. (PNA)