The Philippines has sent its first commercial shipment of fresh Carabao mangoes to Canada, with one metric ton of the prized fruit arriving in Vancouver as the country seeks to expand its agricultural exports and open new markets for Filipino growers.

In a news release Monday, Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said the shipment marks a new market opportunity for Philippine mango producers, as the government works to strengthen the industry’s ability to consistently supply foreign buyers and meet export requirements.

“Opening new markets means opening new opportunities for our farmers. When we can sell more Philippine agricultural products abroad, we create opportunities to increase farm incomes, encourage more investment in agriculture, and bring greater economic activity to the countryside,” Tiu Laurel said.

The Department of Agriculture (DA) said the shipment, consisting of 250 cartons, was sent off last Friday through a partnership between Mensch FilAm Corp. and the Department of Trade and Industry’s Export Marketing Bureau under its Outbound Business Matching Mission program.

The agency said that Vancouver-based Fresh Makers Ltd., which supplies supermarkets and institutional buyers, will import the mangoes; Air Canada will handle air transport, while Airspeed Cargo will provide logistics support.

The DA said more than 40 mango growers’ groups in the country have been consolidated into a single federation to improve industry coordination, supply consolidation and market access.

Through the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), the DA is also addressing diseases affecting mango production and strengthening plant health measures required by export markets.

BPI and Mitsui & Co. have also signed an agreement to support the development of the Philippine mango industry and expand opportunities for local growers and exporters. (PNA)