After the Iloilo Provincial Agriculture Office announced an incentive program for cacao farmers earlier this year, the Antique Cacao Association is also encouraging more local cacao production.

According to Ramon Iwag, who heads the association, more local production is necessary in order to provide resources for producers of local tablea and native chocolates, who are importing materials from other parts of the country.

He added, a meeting at the Antique Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) office yesterday resulted in a resolution calling for the conduct of trainings for farmers to enter cacao production.

The Iloilo program presented a “plant now, pay later” scheme for both cacao and coffee farmers, where farmers can take advantage of discounts on planting materials, which would be incumbent on the survival rate of the crops – a higher discount for a greater survival rate./PLL, WDJ