60-Hectare National Food Hub Worth PHP8.5 Billion To Rise In Clark

A 60-hectare National Food Hub worth Php8.5 billion is set to be established at the Clark Airport Complex, envisioned to further enhance the food and agro-industries of the country, especially in the northern part of Luzon.

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Alfredo Pascual and Clark International Airport Corp. (CIAC) President and Chief Executive Officer Arrey Perez have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for this project. I Photo: DTI Philippines

Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Alfredo Pascual and Clark International Airport Corp. (CIAC) President and Chief Executive Officer Arrey Perez have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for this project.

Pascual highlighted that the project is part of the department’s three-year Food Logistics Action Agenda, approved by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. in August 2023, aimed at ensuring affordable and accessible food for all Filipinos.

He emphasized that the hub is positioned as the country’s premium wholesale market and distribution center for high-value and top-quality food products, offering an array of services including food processing, warehousing, trading, market services, international shipping, and research and quality control.

“Region 3 is already agricultural. In fact, some areas could still be converted into planting high-value crops and raising animals for food. [It] will be a catalyst in that region for developing a food and agro-industrial corridor that will hopefully be expanded more to Region 1 and possibly Region 2,” emphasized the DTI chief.

He added that with its proximity to the Subic Port, the food hub can also boost the halal food industry, as industry players can utilize the hub’s services for exporting their products.

Meanwhile, Perez shared that CIAC is eyeing the food hub as a public-private partnership (PPP) project, noting that a feasibility study for the project is already being conducted by the PPP Center and the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

He mentioned that the results of the feasibility study are expected to be released by the third quarter of the year, with the bidding process to follow soon. Perez stated that the first phase of the food hub project is expected to be delivered before the end of the Marcos administration.

“From all the major distribution hubs in different provinces in Central Luzon and Northern Luzon, we can be a mega-aggregator and an aggregation for efficiency of food and commodities. At the grassroots level, we are going to empower the farmers, the livestock growers, even fishermen,” added the CIAC official.

Pascual also revealed that the operator of the Rungis International Market in Paris, France, which is the largest wholesale food market in Europe, has already expressed interest in investing in the National Food Hub.

WEEKLY FEATURE : Jose Mari Chan And The Christmas Anthem