MANILA, Philippines — Senator Francis Pangilinan vowed to boost funding for the local production of ube or purple yam under the 2027 budget amid its surging popularity in the international scene.
The senator over the weekend pressed for more support for the production of ube — a naturally sweet, starchy vegetable grown by Filipino farmers.
Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that ube exports from the Philippines have risen in recent years, with the country shipping around $3.25 million, or nearly 1.7 million kilos-worth of ube in 2025 from $2.7 million in 2024.
“So, now what we’re doing is we’re preparing for the next budget cycle and look into how we can provide additional funding for the high-value crops program but also focus this time on ube,” Pangilinan said.
The Department of Agriculture’s (DA) high-value crop program provides essential support to localized farming sectors, having allocated ₱500 million for cacao and coffee in the 2026 budget.
He said reports showed that ube has “transcended Filipino culture and entered mainstream consciousness as cafes and restaurants around the world hunt for the next viral food and drink.”
He raised the need to bank on opportunities created by the global interest in the country’s high-value food products, such as ube and mango.
“We’ll figure out how to source the funds and make it happen,” said Pangilinan, chairman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Food and Agrarian Reform.
The Philippine Root Crop Research and Training Center said in a research paper that ube production faces several challenges, including limited access to resources, pests and diseases, lack of mechanization, and predominance of small-scale farming systems.
