On 19 July 2018, PAGASA’s STC was invited to a Special Mtg at DAP Office on d Status of Competition in Phil. Supermarkets with DTI Undersecretary Ruth Castelo and the other staff members of the Development Academy of the Philippines.

 

The Phili. Consumer-Centric Traders Association (PCCTA) held a forum on 6 July 2018 at the Sulo Hotel to clear things up regarding the new QC Ordinance prohibiting the sale of sugared-beverage and salted-foods to elementary and high school students within 100 meters from the gates of any public or private school.  Needless to say, the same goes for the sale of cigarettes near schools and places where the youth congregate. There were a lot of technical questions asked and addressed during this forum.  However, there were also a lot of gray areas left unclear.  The QC City Hall was represented by a lady-lawyer who is on top of this Ordinance.  She says adults/parents may buy snack foods for school-age children in stores within 100 meters from schools but retailers were not allowed to sell these items (including sugared-beverage) to the same set of children.  Rationale is that this is a health bill trying to encourage children to eat food which provide the proper nutrition.  Children may bring in snackfoods/beverages in their lunch boxes if parents/guardians prepared these for their meals/snacks but are discouraged from buying the same in stores nearby.  Attending for PAGASA was its President, Steven T. Cua and JC Plaza’s mother-daughter team of Susan and Charlene Lim.

 

“Philippine Food and Agribusiness: Performance and Forecasts” is a  Mid-Year Food and Agri Business Conference held at the PLDT Hall of UA&P’s APEC Bldg. on 5 July 2018.  PAGASA has been invited a number of times to share food retail’s developments and contribution to the economy at this regular Conference. Speakers were Phil. Confederation of Grains Assn. Pres. Herculano Co, Harbest Agribusiness Corp.’s Pres. Arsenio Barcelona, Edwin Chen/ Pres.-Pork Producers Fed. of the Phils., Wilfredo Yap/Exec. Dir. of Santeh Aquaculture S&T Foundation, Inc., PAGASA’s STC for Food Retail Industry and finally, UA&P’s Exec. Dir. of the Center for Food and Agri Business Dr. Rolando Dy who stayed on for the Open Forum with Mr. Cua.

 

The 1st Shop Talk Asia Forum was held at the Ramon Magsaysay Center along Roxas Blvd. on 4 July 2018. A group of retail entrepreneurs shared their rich experience in business to all attendees. This is an offshoot of the tele- radio project over TV Inquirer. Again, PAGASA’s Myke Teodoro represented the Association at this Affair.

 

In another episode of Talk Shop Asia over Radio TV Inquirer on 24 June 2018, PAGASA as a co-organizer again guested over the program with PAGASA being represented by its Treasurer Mykel Teodoro (2-R). It was another lively discussion on retail developments in and around the country.

STC decided to make a trip to Cagayan Province up north and visited PAGASA Member Candice Megamart run by PAGASA P.R.O. Edna Ontiveros and son Cyrus.  On the bright morning of 23 June 2018, he made the rounds of Tuguegarao’s city proper and its historic tour sites like the Callao Caves (where later on archaeologists have found a foot bone that could prove the Philippines was first settled by humans 67,000 years ago, thousands of years earlier than previously thought.).

 

PAGASA was invited to the Philippine launch of the 5-in-1 Food Show on 26 March 2018 at the Manila Hotel.  The Food Show will be held from 27-30 June 2018 at Taipei’s Nangang Exhibition Center Hall 1 at the World Trade Center Complex.  STC had a picture taken with Ben Tan of TAITRA (Taiwan External Trade Dev’t. Council) in front of their tarpaulin stand. He was also introduced to TAITRA Manila’s 1-week old Director Mr. Clement Chan.

On 19 June 2018, Ms. Misako Kanaya (in stripes) of the NNA Research Group of Kyoda News from Tokyo, Japan visited the offices of PAGASA to interview Mr. Steven Cua regarding the state of the Philippine market for frozen products such as ice cream drops/delights given the huge consumer base.  They were in the country for some 11 days to study the feasibility of bringing in Japanese ice cream delights most likely after seeing the success of their Korean counterpart in penetrating the local market.

On 31 May 2018, Talk.Shop.Asia held another Inspiring Forum at the E-Hotel Suites along Makati’s Arnaiz Avenue.  They are hence inviting PAGASA to all their networking activities/events. PAGASA’s Myke Teodoro joined the people at Talk.Shop.Asia and wined and dined the afternoon away.

 

 

 

Though the last meeting of the National Price Coordinating Council was held only on 6 March, DTI felt an urgent need to hold another meeting immediately given the public’s seeming unrest over price increases attributed to government’s aggressive taxation program called T.R.A.I.N. Prices covering all commodities were reported and analyzed including factors affecting the economy like interest rates, exchange rate fluctuations, OFW remittances, the weather, world prices of fuel, sugar and flour, the transport sector, labor, etc. A press-con was later held where PAGASA’s STC was invited to sit in with DTI Sec. Ramon Lopez, DTI Usec. Ruth Castelo, DILG Usec. Epimaco Densing III and DA Usec. Ariel Cayanan.