LA
TRINIDAD, Benguet -- This capital town known for its luscious strawberries
highlights yet one of its high value products – coffee.
The 3rd Coffee Festival set Feb. 5 to 8
pays tribute to the hardworking coffee growers and promotes coffee of choice as
well as agriculture-based products, said municipal tourism officer Valred
Olsim.
This year’s theme is “Seng-ew ni
Kape, Tonos ni Umidi” (Aroma of Coffee, Harmony of Community).
The week-long festivity starts Feb. 4 with an opening
program at the Municipal Park.
It
will be followed by a coffee forum at the Municipal Park.
On Feb. 5, “coffee appreciation” will be held among coffee
shop owners. Olsim said they have engaged coffee shop owners on the
brewing of coffee types in Kalinga, Sagada, and the province’s Barako among
others and allow them to savor the distinct flavors and how they differ from
each other.
Olsim said since the first coffee festival in 2018, the
Benguet Arabica has gained national attention and momentum as a
coffee of choice.
Last month, coffee enthusiasts from United States, China,
Australia, and Korea visited the town.
Cupping
of locally produced Arabica coffee is scheduled Feb. 6.
Cupping evaluates characteristics of a particular coffee bean and
helps distinguish coffee for blends or specialty coffee.
There would also be a barista demonstration at the park.
A two-day farm tour at the La Trinidad Arabica Coffee
Producers Association (LATACPA) farms, Bantay farms, Benguet State University
farms and facilities, and other established coffee farms in town will be
held on Feb. 7 and 8.
Unlimited coffee will also be served at the municipal park
but drinkers will have to bring their own cups.
Also
on the last day (Feb. 8) a Coffee Stakeholders Assembly or Coffee
Farmers’ Day would be held.
Felicitas Ticba-en, chief of the Municipal Agriculture
Office, said the Coffee Farmers’ Day includes competition on manual
pulping and roasting.
It is also an occasion for coffee farmers to have fun and
fellowship.
Entrepreneurs who are into coffee arts and crafts,
processing and other skills whether food or non- food, were encouraged to join.
Those whose innovations on coffee which are not yet
commercialized are also invited to showcase their products or materials in
whatever form, Ticba-en said.
The celebration of the Coffee Festival every first week of
February is pursuant to Municipal Ordinance No. 5 series 2017.
The festival has become an avenue for entrepreneurs
from Manila to partner with the private coffee farmers who supply coffee produce,
Olsim informed.
It also lives up to La Trinidad’s monicker as valley
of colors with its colorful places, people and products such as
coffee, he added.
In Benguet, La Trinidad municipality has the most number of
coffee growers with a total of 744.
Based on reports of the Municipal Agriculture Office, there
are about 47,686 of non-bearing coffee trees and 84,896 of fruit bearing trees
planted in 43.25 hectares with an annual production of about 78 metric tons of
coffee beans.
Coffee is a common beverage in the households in the
Cordillera region. It is served as a drink during occasions and community
affairs paired with boiled sweet potatoes or taro. (JDP/SCA-PIA CAR,
Benguet)
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