Situated in a region with greatly abundant waters, the Philippines is considered as one of the most biodiverse marine ecosystems in the world. It, therefore, comes to no surprise that fisheries play a major role in the lives and livelihoods of Filipinos.

The Philippines is among the major fishing-producing countries in the world, with tuna as one of the significant contributors to the total volume of production. It is also known that tuna is one of the most popular and commercially valuable fishery products in the Philippines, and has been known as an export commodity here in the country.

In order to further strengthen the overall competitiveness and identify more opportunities for the tuna value chain, the Department of Agriculture – Philippine Rural Development Project (DA-PRDP) South Luzon Cluster crafted a Value Chain Analysis (VCA) for the said commodity.

The VCA is a study conducted on the tuna value chain situation in the three (3) regions of Southern Luzon, namely CALABARZON, MIMAROPA, and Bicol.

South Luzon has several major fishing grounds like Lamon Bay in CALABARZON, Mindoro Strait and Palawan waters in MIMAROPA, and Lagonoy Gulf in Bicol. In 2017, the total value of production of the four (4) tuna species caught from the mentioned fishing grounds, namely, YellowFin, Bigeye, Skipjacks, and Frigate, amounted to PhP5.2 million, both from commercial and municipal tuna fisheries.

Given its inherent strengths and opportunities, Southern Luzon is seen as the next supplier of tuna in the country and the international market.  Concerned personnel has recognized that there is potential growth for the tuna industry in the cluster, thus, the formulation of this VCA.

The study’s coverage is limited to the fresh-chilled yellowfin and bigeye tuna species, which are commonly traded in the Southern Luzon, Metro Manila, and in the Philippines in general. The VCA will also focus on hook and line fishing, as this method is more sustainable compared to nets.

Nevertheless, all value chain segments’ concerns were looked into — the vertical and horizontal relationship of value chain players, income and profit, demand and markets of the commodity, current supply situation from the region viz global production, strengths, constraints, and opportunities.

The selection of yellowfin and bigeye tuna species as the focus of the VCA is primarily based on the earlier provincial Tuna VCA of Occidental Mindoro of MIMAROPA region, which focuses on yellowfin tuna.

In order to craft the VCA, key informant interviews, stakeholders consultation, primary and secondary data, and information gathering were conducted from the selected sites in South Luzon. Observation visits in the Malabon night market and other public markets in Metro Manila were also undertaken to collect additional inputs to the study.

Through the tuna VCA, it will also promote public-private partnership by presenting opportunities to the private sector as a viable business.

The VCA is an essential planning tool used by DA-PRDP that helps in identifying and developing investment and interventions for a certain commodity. ### (Lea P. Caliuag, InfoACE Unit, PRDP South Luzon PSO, with reports from South Luzon Tuna VCA)