Pasay city: The Philippines' iconic Carabao mangoes have now reached Toronto, Canada, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said on Thursday. The agency conducted a send-off ceremony for the country's first commercial shipment of fresh Carabao mangoes to Canada at the Philippine Airlines cargo terminal in Pasay City on Wednesday.

According to Philippines News Agency, DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel stated that the market expansion is a significant development in the agricultural sector. He emphasized the importance of widening and diversifying the global market for Philippine farm products such as bananas, coconuts, and mangoes. "It is time for other parts of the world to get a taste of the Philippines," he added.

The shipment consists of 1 metric ton (MT) of fresh Carabao mangoes destined for Toronto. Philippine exporters Hi-Las Marketing Corp. and Castillo Import Export Ventures Inc. supplied the mangoes, with Ontario-based TSI Tropicals Inc. serving as the importer. The fresh mangoes will be transported by the flagship carrier PAL through commercial air freight.

High Value Export Crop, Agri Fishery Export Development and Promotion Office, Agriculture Undersecretary Philip Young highlighted the successful collaboration between the government and the private sector. "The government is helping pave the way for the private sector to showcase to the world the products of Philippine farms. This is what happens when a nation works together," he said.

The Philippine Agriculture Office in Washington, D.C. coordinated the shipment with the Philippine Consulate General in Toronto, Philippine Trade and Investment Center in Toronto, and mango industry stakeholders. DA spokesperson Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa informed that another shipment is planned mid-next week, citing supply from Northern Luzon and Zambales.

Previously, the Philippines had exported fresh mangoes to Rome. Beyond mangoes, the DA is actively promoting a range of high-value crops including Cavendish bananas, cardaba or saba bananas, cacao, pomelo, rambutan, dalandan, mango, pineapple, okra, asparagus, pili, durian, avocado, dragon fruits, calamansi, and ube.