08 May 2006
LEGAZPI CITY—TAGGED AS THE Philippine’s almond, pili is at par with the macadamia nut of Australia, considered by many as a “the prime edible nut.”
Rosemarie Diaz-Battung, owner of the 70-year-old Albay Pilinut Candy factory in Old Albay District says the nuts are used for the delicacies but the fiber covering the nutshell can also be eaten.
“The shell is also a good material in firing our antique ovens,” she added.
The Department of Trade and Industry here says pili (Canarium ovatum) is now considered as the country’s most important export nut.
Owing to its abundant supply in Bicol, especially in the province of Sorsogon, the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) declared Sorsogon as the “commodity champion for pili” while the Department of Agriculture referred to pili as “flagship commodity” for the region.
Production
Among places like the Southern Tagalog, Southern Visayas, Southern Mindanao and Caraga province, Bicol is a major pili producer.
The region accounts for 82 percent of national pili production, the bulk of which comes from Sorsogon, said DTI-Bicol.
Under the agency’s “One Town, One Product” (Otop) program, pili was identified as the banner product of Sorsogon City and the municipalities of Irosin, Bulusan and Sta. Magdalena in the same province.
An average pili tree bears fruit six or seven years after planting, with certain varieties producing flowers, three to four years from planting.
However, it is only in the seventh or eighth year before the tree produces around 1,000 to 1,500 nuts.
Pili trees vary in their fruit-bearing capacity, with the older ones giving more fruits.
A poor bearer produces 500 fruits or less while heavy yielders each gives from 3,000 to 5,000 fruits during the season.
An average tree produces 33 kilos of nuts in one year.
In Bicol, the pili harvest season begins in May and ends in September with the peak July. In the Visayas, particularly Samar, harvesting is in October.
Pili fruits are harvested when fully matured. The maturity index for pili nut is the full purplish black pulp of the whole nut.
Harvesting is done once a week or twice a month by climbing the tree and using a bamboo pole with a wire hook.
A scissor-hook-type pole was developed by the Bicol University College of Agriculture and Fisheries here to equip gatherers with a better harvesting device. The device has an average picking capacity of 25.54 kg per hour—higher than the traditional method.
Proper post-harvest handling of the fruits ensures good quality and a longer shelf-life of the nuts.
Non-food applications
The only known fruit oil of commercial importance in the world market today are olive and palm oils but the pili kernel is another oil source with a big market potential as pili oil is good in the manufacture of soaps, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics.
The pili shell can be burned as fuel and the charcoal can be used to decolorize sugar, purify air and water, eliminate jet fumes in airports and be used as either a filter or deodorizer.
The shell can also be pounded and mixed with plastics to be fashioned into crafts and decorative and souvenir items.
Shell granules are good sandblasting agents for power generators, an inexpensive replacement
for the apricot seed hulls which are imported and costly to obtain.
The pili testa or seed coat like coir or sawdust can be used as a potting material for growing plants such as orchids and anthuriums.
The pili resins, also called “Manila elemi,” can be used as fixative for perfumes, and for the production of lacquers, varnishes, adhesives and pharmaceuticals.
The pili timber is classified as hardwood and can be turned into furniture items and wood panels.
Pili trees, strong and resistant to strong winds, are known to be good avenue trees owing to their good form and cool shade. They are used to line highways, parks and playgrounds. Unlike deciduous trees, they do not shed their leaves, which means that an area lined with pili trees will remain clean and free from dried leaves.
Market and economy
Local food processors absorb almost all of the supply of pili here in Bicol.
However, according to the DTI, the Philippines is able to export pili nuts to the United States,
Hawaii, Germany, France, Great Britain, Japan and China.
Here in Bicol, pili provides additional income to some 13,435 farmers with an average of 10 pili trees in their farms and to the laborers hired as harvesters.
The processing industry generates employment for people such as traders, processors, assemblers, factory workers, storekeepers and other services in the industry.
A DTI research quoted Richard A. Hamilton of the University of Hawaii and also a macadamia breeder who said the current status of pili is equivalent to that of macadamia some 30 years ago, by far the clearest indication that the pili nut has a great potential of developing into a major industry. Ephraim Aguilar, PDI Southern Luzon Bureau
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