A groundbreaking ceremony took place on December 08, 2020, at the Women’s Training Center in Barangay Cogon, Baybay City, Leyte to officially mark the establishment of the sweetpotato puree processing center in the City.

During the ceremony, the City of Baybay represented by Hon. Jose L. Cari and Visayas State University headed by Dr. Edgardo E. Tulin inked two Memorandum of Agreements (MOAs) and one licensing agreement to support the establishment of the Rootcrops Industry in the City.

The first MOA is for the needed financial, technical, and product development support to run the processing center while the second one is for the establishment of the supply areas. The licensing agreement signing was also done as part of the protocol for the technology transfer of VSU generated technologies.

VSU-PhilRootcrops considered the activity as another great achievement and opportunity for the center to perform its mandate and showcase its technologies despite the challenges brought by the current pandemic.

As a research center mandated to provide technical assistance to rootcrops research and development programs, Dr. Edgardo E. Tulin and PhilRootcrops Director Dr. Erlinda A. Vasquez pledged to provide continuous technical assistance to all the project stakeholders, especially the farmers and the processors.

Both parties anticipated the impacts of the undertaking: to enhance health, improve lives, and more wealth for the people of Baybay through rootcrops.

The City Mayor, Hon. Jose L. Cari said, “I am hoping for the best in the coming months for this new endeavor of the Local Government Unit, PhilRootcrops, and Visayas State University”.

Additionally, during the said ceremony, the Department of Science and Technology, headed by their Provincial Director John Glenn Ocaña, turned over the ice cream maker to the City of Baybay. This machine will be used in producing ice cream from sweetpotato—one of the targeted final products using the puree that will be produced from the processing center. By:MMGongora