Mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana), a tropical fruit known for its white, juicy flesh and dark purple rind, is usually in season from August to September only. But with the off-season mangosteen production and management technology developed by the Department of Agriculture-Regional Field Office (DA-RFO) 11, the tropical fruit can now be enjoyed year-round.
Funded by the Bureau of Agricultural Research (BAR), the production of off-season mangosteen was made possible through a project, “Development of Package of Technologies for Off-Season Production of Mangosteen.”
The research project was conducted from January 2015 to January 2019 at Davao Agricultural Research Central Experiment Station (DARCES) Manambulan, Tugbok District in Davao City, yielding favourable results that will benefit both the farmers and consumers.
Thinking beyond the perspective of the consumers, the farmers can now set an efficient production schedule wherein they can sell the product from Php 35 per kilo for in-season mangosteen to Php 250 per kilo for off-season mangosteen. This is an estimated 148 percent return of investment.
Part of the project was also the development of information, education and communication (IEC) materials on the package of technology (POT). These IEC materials were distributed during the farmer’s field day and are available at the Farmers’ Information and Technology Services (FITS) Center of DA-RFO 11, for free to those who are interested.
On 17 May 2019, DA-RFO 11 will be holding the Grand Farmer’s Fiesta as part of the celebration of the Farmers and Fisherfolk’s Month. DARCES will be opening its demonstration farm in Manambulan, Tugbok District in Davao City to showcase the technology. Likewise, 200 copies of IEC materials on off-season mangosteen technology will also be distributed on 27 September 2019 during the Research Division Anniversary and Farmer’s Field Day activities. ### (Clarisse Mae N. Abao)
