Category: Business Mirror

NAGOYA Asian Games silver medalists Kurt Barbosa and Tachiana Mangin lead a six-athlete team that will see action in taekwondo’s kyorugi events in the Sixth Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games (AIMAG) set December 11 to 21 in Riyadh, Saudia, Arabia.

Joining the Paris 2024 Olympian Barbosa (men -54 kgs) and former Asian junior champion Mangin (women -51 kgs) are Angelous Lustado (-60 kgs) and Aljen Anyaga (-67 kgs) in the men’s division and Clarence Sarza (-46 kgs) and veteran campaigner Baby Jessica Canabal (-57 kgs) in the women’s class.

The composition of the poomsae team, Philippine Taekwondo Association secretary-general Rocky Samson said, will be announced later.

‘This is going to be the same level and intensity with the last Asian Games. We must prepare seriously,’ Samson said. ‘So after our recent evaluation, the same athletes will represent us in AIMAG.’

The Virtual Mixed Taekwondo event where Jesus Gabriel Derick Yape won a gold medal for the Philippines in Nagoya, is not in the Riyadh program.

Samson said that the AIMAG is an integral part of PTA’s qualification campaign for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.

‘We can gauge our athletes in AIMAG if they can compete in next year’s Olympic qualification,’ he said.

There will be eight kyorugi events at the LA 2028 Olympics–58, -68, -80 and +80 kgs in men and -49, -57, -67, and +67 kgs in women.

ATENEO de Manila University cruised past the University of the East, 73-56, in a victory that could revive its Final Four bid in the UAAP Season 89 Collegiate Women’s Basketball Tournament on Wednesday at the Blue Eagle Gym.

The Blue Eagles snapped their two-game losing streak to cap off a challenging first-round campaign on a high note, improving to 3-4 and remaining in sixth place in the standings.

‘During the halftime, I discussed with girls their discipline on one-on-one defense, evidently which didn’t show in the first half,’ Ateneo head coach PJ Navarro said. ‘So in the second half, we just made it tough for them to blow by us.’

As the second round begins on Wednesday, Seng Calago remains optimistic about the Blue Eagles’ chances of extending their Final Four streak to five consecutive seasons.

‘We need to lock in and go 100 percent each time,’ Calago said.

Although UE got off to a strong start and built a seven-point lead in the second quarter, Ateneo regained control behind Kacey Dela Rosa to take a 37-34 advantage at halftime.

Dela Rosa continued her dominant performance after the break, building on her double-double to help the Blue Eagles establish a double-digit lead heading into the final quarter.

With the early scare behind them, Ateneo’s shooters heated up in the fourth quarter, allowing the Blue Eagles to stretch their lead to 20 points with less than four minutes remaining.

The Lady Warriors managed just 10 points in the final frame.

The dynamic duo of Dela Rosa and Calago led the charge, with both seniors recording double-doubles.

Dela Rosa finished with 23 points, 18 rebounds and five assists, while Calago tallied 22 points, 15 rebounds and five assists.

Hannah Lopez also made a significant contribution with 12 points and three rebounds.

UE, meanwhile, suffered its seventh loss of the season and 31st consecutive defeat dating back to Season 87.

Kezza Buscar paced the Lady Warriors with 18 points, while Moana Vacalares added 15 points, seven rebounds, and six assists.

There won’t be a golden hat-trick in floor exercise and vault for Carlos Yulo as the Paris Olympics and Nagoya Asian Games double champion finishes eighth and last in the final of floor exercise at the world artistic championships in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, on Saturday.

Fred Richard became the first American in 23 years to win the world title, sending Great Britain’s Jake Jarman to the silver and Israel’s Artem Dolgopyat to the bronze meda

Some prayers enter our lives before we understand them. Their words arrive in childhood, borne by familiar voices. Years later, when those voices have fallen silent, the prayers remain.

I was brought up reciting the Rosary. I still pray it daily, with varying degrees of attention: sometimes absorbed, sometimes distracted, sometimes sustained by the simple fidelity of doing it again. The fingers move; the mind wanders; a familiar phrase brings it home.

October, the month of the Holy Rosary, invites that homecoming.

In Hagonoy, Bulacan, home has a particular face: the old image of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary in our Santo Rosario parish, embracing Mercado, Santo Rosario, Santa Cruz, San Roque, and San Pascual.

Established as a parish in 1952, it gathers communities whose devotion reaches further back. Before that image, generations have brought what no parish register can fully record: a child’s illness, a livelihood threatened, gratitude too deep for speech.

The Rosary itself grew across generations. Medieval Christians used counted prayers as a counterpart to the monks’ 150 biblical psalms. In time, the Marian Psalter of 150 Hail Marys developed.

Dominican preaching helped spread the devotion; its familiar form emerged gradually. The cherished tradition linking it to Saint Dominic belongs within that longer history.

Its name evokes a garden of roses. Yet its mysteries lead through more than gardens: a birth in poverty, a mother searching for her child, betrayal, execution, resurrection.

In 2002, John Paul II proposed the luminous mysteries, bringing Christ’s public ministry more fully into the meditation. Marian in its voice, the Rosary is centered on Jesus.

For a people acquainted with separation, bereavement, and stubborn hope, these mysteries offer places to rest our own lives. A mother awaiting news of a child abroad needs little explanation of anxious love.

The feast on October 7 recalls Lepanto in 1571, when the Holy League defeated the Ottoman fleet. Pope Pius V had called for the Rosary; Catholics attributed victory to Mary’s intercession.

Philippine devotion carries another naval memory. In 1646, Spanish and Filipino defenders repelled Dutch attacks in five battles. Their deliverance was attributed to Our Lady of the Rosary, remembered in La Naval de Manila.

There is a remarkable human detail behind the splendor. The La Naval image, dated 1593, was carved by a non-Christian Chinese artisan. Hands outside the faith helped fashion the face before which generations would pray. Today, at Santo Domingo Church in Quezon City, that image binds sacred art, public memory, and devotion.

In Manaoag, Pangasinan, pilgrims come to Our Lady of the Rosary, affectionately called Apo Baket. The basilica’s history records that her image survived the church fire of 1898. Whatever burdens pilgrims carry, the journey gives them somewhere to bring them.

Beyond our shores, Lourdes and Fatima have made the beads familiar across languages. At Lourdes in 1858, Bernadette’s account describes the Lady passing Rosary beads through her fingers while Bernadette prayed. At Fatima, the children reported that, on October 13, 1917, she identified herself as Our Lady of the Rosary.

These are distinct histories and testimonies. Together, they reveal the extraordinary reach of a prayer small enough to carry in a pocket.

Other faiths know the intimacy of counted prayer. Hindu devotees use ‘mala’ (a Sanskrit word that translates directly to ‘garland’ or ‘string of beads’) for ‘japa,’ the repetition of sacred names or mantras; Buddhist traditions also use prayer beads.

Muslims use strings commonly numbering 33 or 99 beads in remembrance of God. Orthodox Christians repeat the Jesus Prayer with knotted prayer ropes.

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Their beliefs and purposes differ. The resemblance nevertheless invites respect: across religious boundaries, people enlist the hand to steady attention and return the mind to what they hold sacred. A bead can mark the place where distraction ends and remembrance begins.

John Paul II understood repetition through the language of love. Familiar expressions can be spoken again because affection renews their meaning. Anyone who has heard a child call repeatedly for a mother can understand.

Still, attention matters. Habit can preserve prayer through dry seasons; it can also become an invitation to listen more deeply. Perhaps, when my mind strays, the next bead offers another beginning.

Our history gives that beginning a public meaning. In February 1986, Filipinos at EDSA faced armed troops with prayers, flowers, and rosaries. Religious faith stood alongside courage, military defections, and civic resolve. The beads belonged to people who had stepped into danger for their country.

A devotion once associated with naval victory had become part of a memorable witness to peaceful resistance. Prayer found expression in a refusal to harm.

The Jesuit poet Gerard Manley Hopkins addressed Mary with words of extraordinary tenderness: ‘Be thou then, thou dear Mother, my atmosphere.’

An atmosphere surrounds and sustains us before we notice it. So, perhaps, does the faith learned in childhood: the remembered cadence, the patient return, the hope that survives our imperfect attention.

In Hagonoy, our old Santo Rosario image remains a meeting place for generations. Those who prayed before us have left their names, their descendants, their unfinished hopes. We bring our own, and someday others will stand where we stood.

I think of the beads moving through those many hands. Each life has held its portion of joy and sorrow; each has needed light; each has hoped that death would not have the final word.

The Rosary gathers these longings into prayer. And when the last bead has passed through our fingers, may something of its tenderness remain in our hands: enough to comfort the grieving, lift the fallen, and help another find the way home.

Dr. Pablo Trillana III is a lawyer, author, former Chairman of the National Historical Institue (now the National Historical Commission of the Philippines), and a lifelong student of Philippine history and Rizal studies.

FOR an independent musician, the price of making an album is not always measured in studio bills or production costs. Sometimes, it is measured in hours that could have been spent somewhere else-at home, with family, or simply getting some sleep.

Filipino-British singer-songwriter and producer Sam Benwick relates to that, mentioning those as the hardest part of making HIGHS and lows, her first full-length album, which was released on October 16.

‘Time away from my family was, I think, the most burdensome for me,’ Sam told SoundStrip.

There were nights when the 22-year-old stayed awake to write, record, and finish the album. There were also days when she chose music over the ordinary things she enjoyed with her family, even when they were only in the next room.

‘There were times when I would cry because I just wanted to be with my family,’ she explained. ‘Not that they were far away from me; they were just in the other room.’

That trade-off says something about the album itself: AS HIGHS and lows is not simply the latest entry in Benwick’s growing catalog.

Sam Benwick

Eight months, or perhaps years

SAM has been making music since she was young, eventually releasing her self-produced debut EP, Songs About Heartbreak, in 2020.

Covers helped introduce her to listeners, but writing and producing her own material has remained central to her work.

For HIGHS and lows, the immediate production process took roughly seven to eight months. But fitting that work around school and other responsibilities stretched the process closer to a year. And even that does not tell the whole story.

Some of the songs on the 15-track record were written years before Sam began putting the album together. They were pieces of different periods of her life that eventually found a place within the same record.

‘So in actuality, this album did take years to make,’ the rising artist told this newspaper.

That longer timeline also gives context to the album’s subject. HIGHS and lows follows Sam’s changing understanding of love-from the excitement of finding it to the pain of encountering the wrong kind, and the lessons that remain after both.

It is less a declaration that she has figured love out than a record of what she learned while trying to understand it. Her faith became part of that process, too.

Choosing faith over fear

MAKING the album independently brought its own uncertainty. Sam knew the decision would be difficult, but she wanted to take the step rather than wait until everything felt safe or perfectly timed.

That mindset shaped her decision to make a full album now.

She has already released singles and two EPs, but a full-length record had been something she wanted to make for years. Eventually, the question became less about whether she was ready and more about whether she was willing to begin.

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‘I would always base my decisions on fear instead of on faith and hope,’ Sam said. ‘But now, I’m turning over a new leaf.’

The album, she said, is an attempt to make music for herself, her family and people who might need to hear what she has to say and, above all, for God.

That does not make the record a simple statement of certainty. If anything, its title suggests the opposite: that the experiences worth writing about often exist somewhere between the extremes.

The highs matter because there were lows. The lows matter because they changed what came after.

For the ones who stayed

For Sam, that circle extends beyond her family.

Her supporters, known collectively as the Samshines, have followed her through the years as she moved from covers and earlier releases toward increasingly personal original music.

For her, their encouragement became particularly meaningful as she took on the uncertainty of working independently. Now, they are part of the album’s next chapter.

Some members of the community have had the chance to hear HIGHS and lows in full before its official release during her listening party earlier this month, turning what began as a largely private process-late nights, old songs, new recordings and time away from family-into something shared.

Sam admits she could have made the album faster. But speed was never really the point.

For an artist who spent years writing songs before deciding they belonged together, the record is as much about finally taking the risk as it is about the music itself.

‘I just wanted to release an album and not let my fears get in the way,’ she said.

And perhaps that is where HIGHS and lows ultimately begin-not with having all the answers, but with deciding that waiting for certainty is no longer a reason not to make the next song.

For many, gold marks life’s milestones: earrings given to a baby, wedding bands exchanged by a couple or a bracelet passed down by a grandmother. Be-cause it is durable and does not decay, gold can preserve value for the next gen-eration.

But gold’s value extends beyond the jewelry we wear. It is used in elec-tronic connectors and semiconductors because it conducts electricity efficiently and resists corrosion-qualities important to the computing infrastructure sup-porting artificial intelligence (AI).

Gold also serves a broader economic purpose. Central banks hold it in their reserves to help preserve value when inflation erodes purchasing power and currencies fluctuate.

For the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), gold forms part of the country’s reserves that help the economy absorb external shocks and meet international obligations.

With central bank’s purchasing 288.9 metric tons of gold during the sec-ond quarter of 2026, up 62 percent year-on-year, and demand from AI-related applications remaining strong, the average gold price reached $4,506.29 per troy ounce, 37 percent higher than a year earlier.

Yet long before gold becomes jewelry, a computer component or part of a central bank’s reserves, it must first be recovered from the earth. One of the oldest ways of finding it is through panning: swirling river sediment until lighter materials wash away and denser gold particles remain.

Charles Pangalina, a 40-year-old Twali-Ifugao born and raised in Barangay Didipio, an upland community in Nueva Vizcaya near Quirino, once relied on farming and gold panning. Both provided uncertain incomes. As a high-school graduate, he depended on rain-fed farming, while poor roads made it difficult to bring produce to market.

‘You were lucky if a vehicle made the trip once a week,’ Pangalina re-called.

The area where he panned was eventually depleted, leaving him without a stable livelihood. Gold, however, would remain part of Pangalina’s life. His next opportunity would take him from searching for loose gold particles to helping ex-tract ore from deep beneath his own barangay.

Unlike panning, underground mining involves recovering gold embedded in solid rock through a carefully planned system. It requires trained miners, engi-neers, drillers and equipment operators working together to develop tunnels, operate specialized machinery and safely bring ore to the surface.

OceanaGold (Philippines) Inc. (OGP) began commercial production at the Didipio Mine as Pangalina was looking for work. He joined the mine as a pit technician in November 2014.

Producing both gold and copper, the mine’s underground workings extend to the 2,133-meter relative level-a distance around two and a half times the height of the Burj Khalifa if the skyscraper were turned upside down.

OGP employs more than 968 people, 97 percent of whom are Filipino. Pri-oritizing local residents in the workforce, almost 70 percent come from Nueva Vizcaya and Quirino, while 44 percent are Barangay Didipio residents with Indig-enous roots.

OGP provided Pangalina with three months of underground-mining train-ing. He was part of the service crew and progressed through several operational roles.

His dedication earned the respect of his coworkers and supervisors, even-tually leading to his current position as production supervisor.

‘I asked them, ‘Why me?’ I did not finish college, I was not very good at English, and I did not know how to use a computer. They told me they liked my work ethic and made sure I received managerial training,’ Pangalina recalled.

He also saw his family’s farm’s income improving.

‘My cousins now work on our farm, and their income has increased be-cause their produce no longer spoils before reaching the market through the farm-to-market roads built by OGP,’ he said.

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Elmer Dulnuan, a 39-year-old Twali-Ifugao from Didipio, followed his own path underground. Previously a carpenter, mason and heavy-equipment opera-tor, he joined the mine in 2017 and underwent training in underground-mining operations.

Dulnuan began as a nipper, supplying crews with tools and materials. He steadily advanced and is now acting superintendent for underground mining, helping manage the people and equipment needed to bring ore to the surface and meet production targets.

‘I am proud to lead our team in working safely, Filipinos and expatriates alike,’ he said.

Once the ore reaches the surface, part of Didipio’s output is processed in-to gold doré. Under an agreement effective from March 2025 to March 2028, OGP offers at least 25% of its annual gold doré production to the BSP.

In 2025, OGP sold around 6,684 ounces to the central bank, equivalent to 31% of its annual production. These sales allow locally produced gold to help strengthen the country’s reserve buffer amid inflationary pressures and global uncertainty.

For Pangalina and Dulnuan, however, gold’s value is most evident at home.

Charles supports six children, including his eldest, who is studying nursing. His work has helped him educate his children, improve their home and afford family trips.

Dulnuan and his high-school sweetheart, now his wife of 16 years, are rais-ing five children. His work has helped make their family more comfortable. With a high school now in Brgy. Didipio, his children no longer have to travel four hours to pursue an education. Most importantly, he can return home to them after work.

Behind every piece of jewelry, electronic component or gold bar in a cen-tral-bank vault is a long journey. For those who bring gold to the surface, its value is measured not only in ounces, but in children kept in school, comfortable homes and better futures built close to family.

OceanaGold operates the Didipio gold-copper mine in Luzon un-der a Financial or Technical Assistance Agreement. It is committed to safely and responsibly maximizing the generation of Free Cash Flow from its operation and delivering strong returns for its shareholders. It is a listed company with the Philippine Stock Exchange.

NAGOYA-Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) chairman Patrick Gregorio and Philippine Paralympic Committee (PPC) president Mike Barredo hailed the Filipino athletes for responding to the challenge and finishing 17th overall with two golds, two silvers and three bronzes in the 5th Asian Para Games which drew to a close Saturday at the Mizuho Park Athletic Stadium.

After more than a week of grueling action, swimmers Ernie Gawilan and Arjay Alegarbes bagged gold medals, with Gawilan and table tennis mixed doubles pair of Wilfred Redulla and Lhey Manginsay contributing silvers and swimmer Raemond Adefuin, runner King James Reyes and shot putter Ma. Ravinia Carpena adding bronzes to the coffers.

The haul surpassed the Philippines’s performance in the last edition in Hangzhou three years ago when chess, which the Japanese hosts excluded from this year’s program, is taken out of the tally.

In Hangzhou, the Filipinos collected 10 golds, four silvers and five bronzes, with chess accounting for eight golds, three silvers and two bronzes.

‘It was a very successful performance, congratulations,’ said Gregorio, who flew in for the final two days of the event to cheer for the Filipinos.

‘More or less, with what we did last Para minus chess, of course, we did well,’ Barredo said.

The Philippine squad is now looking forward to the next edition in 2031 in Doha, where it hopes to make the country proud again.

‘What’s important is that we’ll continue supporting our athletes,’ Gregorio said.

Gregorio and Barredo also met with Asian Paralympic Committee (APC) president Majid Rashed to discuss plans to collaborate on building the Philippines’s first training center exclusively for para athletes.

‘One of the reasons I’m here, I met with the APC president and asked them to help develop a game center pareho ng ginawa natin sa taekwondo, football and baseball,’ Gregorio said.’

‘Wow! Meron tayong sariling atin!’

That was my reaction during that most eventful 1985-86 with the explosion of the local punk and new wave scene.

What I read and heard about in the pioneering music scenes in New York, Los Angeles, and London had found its way to Manila. Personally, that fired up all my synapses. I felt so alive.

While I was weaned on 70s hard rock and metal, psychedelic and pop rock, punk and new wave came to the fore during my teen years in the 1980s, thus me gravitating towards the scene with Twisted Red Cross bands Urban Bandits and Betrayed, and new wavers Ethnic Faces, the Dawn, and Identity Crisis, among others.

As a young boy who frequented Musikland (like almost every day from 1979-82) at the basement of Ali Mall, the biggest record store in Manila until Tower Records in Glorietta opened in the late 1990s, they had this long rack dedicated solely to Filipino artists. That rack? It must have had at least 36-40 records on display on either side.

While I purchased foreign artists, I was always drawn and intrigued by the records on display at the local rack. The one record that first drew the attention of my friends and I was Maria Cafra’s debut album with that burning guitar.

‘Like Jimi Hendrix,’ we told each other. And honestly? I didn’t think that was bad. After all, we had the Tony Bennet of the Philippines (Arthur Manuntag). Our Elvis Presley (Eddie Mesa). The Filipino Bee Gees (VST and Company and the Boyfriends). The answer to the Beatles (Dynasouls). And so on.

The Juan dela Cruz Band’s Kahit Anong Mangyari opened the floodgates for me to local music, especially the 1970s Pinoy Rock and its guitar heroes. That was the first Pinoy music record I ever purchased, and I never stopped since.

There was a lot of hype when the Juan dela Cruz Band put out Kahit Anong Mangyari in 1981, where there were print ads, TV and radio appearances, and during launch day, lines of fans eagerly looking to get their mitts on a copy. Me included.

I watched their album launch at the Big Dome and at the Loyola Center.

I did buy that record of Maria Cafra and later tore off a mini poster from Songhits that I taped to my bedroom wall.

The other album cover that snared my attention was Wally Gonzalez’ Tunog Pinoy that is a totally underrated album. And to this day, I enjoy listening to Wally’s two solo albums.

However, what got me to really listen more to local artists was Twisted Red Cross, that legendary underground punk rock label where all their bands had to create their own songs. And honestly, I think the songs where they railed against government corruption and ineptitude, as well as social ills, were something I learned more from music than school. Furthermore, their titles were my first-ever cassettes.

And boy – those early underground cassettes – are very much a part of my teen years aside from Philippine music history. They are keepsakes and treasures. And to this day, I love them as much as my teen self did back in the day.

It massively helped that my schoolmate, friend, and neighbor, Dominic Gamboa, was the vocalist for Betrayed. That put a name and a friendly face to the scene for me.

A few years before Twisted Red Cross detonated like Daisy Cutter (the most destructive conventional non-nuclear bomb in the 1980s) on us unsuspecting music fans, there were the Jerks who whose original songs were played only on DZRJ after which Ocean Zoo and Ethnic Faces put out independently released 7-inch extended play singles.

Then OctoArts released the Dawn’s ‘Enveloped Ideas’ on a 12-inch single, making the band the first local new wave artist signed to a local major label. There was a lot of noise and hype about the Dawn and that 12-inch single (that came out ahead of the full-length album).

I can remember that almost all radio stations gravitated towards ‘Enveloped Ideas’.

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That was the first 12-inch single ever released in the country, and soon the major labels began to put out even foreign 12-inch singles and remixes that were popular at that time because of the rise of the new wave dance parties.

And then came – Identity Crisis, Dean’s December, the Khumb Mela Band, and that 10 of Another Kind compilation.

I fell in love with the scene, and kind of lapped up all the Pinoy Rock, punk, and new wave releases that were issued. I guess that is where I became a true collector in every sense of the word. And to this day, I still do try to get as much local music as I can.

I have been blessed to have put out on vinyl a lot of local artists including the early Jerks music that was never released and only played on DZRJ.

With my own underground label, Eikon Records, the pioneers of the indie scene – (thanks to Insect Dance, DMZ, and Twisted Red Cross – gave me the inspiration to follow in their footsteps.

Who thought I would work with Betrayed, Maria Cafra, Sugar Hiccup, Neighbors, Joey Ayala at ang Bagong Lumad, Apo Hiking Society, Greyhoundz, Kapatid, Wolfgang, among many others?

Pinch me, man. I am still dreaming.

And it only further whets my love for local music – rock, pop, jazz, classical, and all. After all, sariling atin ito.

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University of the Philippines pulled away in the fourth quarter, routing University of the East, 101-70, and extending its winning streak to five games in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines basketball tournament on Sunday at the Blue Eagle Gym.

The seldom-used trio of Choi Palanca, Sean Franco, and LA Andres spearheaded the Fighting Maroons’ breakaway after UE trimmed the deficit to 11 points late in the third quarter. The three combined for 14 points during a decisive 17-2 blitz that extended UP’s lead to 87-61 with 6:27 remaining.

The fourth-quarter surge, powered by UP’s third-stringers, gave the Fighting Maroons a much more comfortable victory than their 91-81 first-round win over UE.

UP improved to a 7-2 record to regain the solo lead in the standings and remain on course for a sixth consecutive Final Four appearance.

Starters Veejay Pre and Gani Stevens continued to lead the Fighting Maroons, with Pre tallying 14 points, six rebounds, and five assists, while Stevens contributed 13 points and five rebounds.

Palanca finished with 12 points and four rebounds. Elliot Dimaculangan and Dikachi Ududo chipped in nine points apiece.

Franco and Sean Alter added eight points apiece, while Miguel Yñiguez and Andres chipped in seven and six points, respectively.

Toper Lagat sustained his consistent play with 23 points, but UE remained winless after nine games, extending its losing streak to 29.

How Tindagat connects small-scale fisherfolk with chefs to bring the best of Philippine waters to the table.

The Philippines has an abundance of seafood, yet getting fish from the fishing grounds to restaurant kitchens while maintaining quality and ensuring fair compensation for fisherfolk remains a challenge.

Tindagat, a social enterprise working directly with small-scale fishing communities, hopes to change this by connecting fishers with restaurants and other buyers, creating a more direct route from the sea to the dining table.

Its collaboration with Chef Kevin Endaya of Lemuria demonstrates how this approach can benefit both sides: helping fishing communities find better markets while giving chefs access to quality local seafood.

‘Instead of importing seafood, we can use local seafood, showcase it internationally in quality,’ Endaya said, describing the potential he sees in the initiative.

During a tasting at Lemuria, familiar Philippine fish took on new identities. Tulingan, commonly fried or cooked in coconut milk, became a tartlet with dill cream. Himallit, or flying fish, was cured and prepared as boquerones, while surahan inspired a fish-based spread reminiscent of Spain’s sobrasada.

The dishes showed how creative cooking can introduce diners to local varieties beyond the preparations they may have grown accustomed to.

For Endaya, the collaboration also addresses a longstanding concern about seafood quality. Fish caught in the provinces can pass through several intermediaries before reaching Manila, with handling and transport potentially affecting its freshness.

He recalled the reaction of his kitchen team when they opened a shipment from Tindagat.

‘When we opened the vacuum pack, hey, it smells like the sea,’ he said. ‘It doesn’t smell like the market.’

For him, this was a testament to the quality of the products and the care taken in handling them.

Shortening the supply chain

FOUNDED in 2021, Tindagat began as an MBA capstone project before developing into a social enterprise. It initially focused on retail customers but later recognized the opportunity to work with restaurants, hotels, and other food-service businesses.

According to Marco Acevedo, Tindagat’s business development specialist, the enterprise aims to connect small-scale artisanal fishing communities directly with markets in Manila and other urban centers.

The goal is to improve livelihoods while ensuring that fisherfolk receive a fairer share of the value of their catch.

Traditional seafood supply chains can involve seven to 11 players, leaving small-scale fishers with limited bargaining power. When catches are abundant, prices can fall sharply, even when considerable work has gone into harvesting the fish.

Tindagat seeks to shorten this chain by acting as a marketing and sales partner for fishing communities.

‘We treat them like our business partners,’ Acevedo said.

The enterprise also trains fishers in filleting, cleaning, processing, freezing, and packaging, enabling them to supply products that are more convenient for restaurants and potentially command better prices.

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Its approach emphasizes traceability, wild-caught seafood, and proper post-harvest handling. Customers can learn where their fish came from and, in some cases, identify the fisher who caught it. Tindagat also works with communities using registered fishing methods and promotes responsible sourcing.

By freezing seafood within hours of landing, the enterprise aims to preserve quality and make storage and transport more manageable.

Rediscovering local fish

BEYOND improving seafood supply, the partnership allows chefs to explore the variety of fish available in Philippine waters.

One example is himallit, which was traditionally dried in the community where Tindagat sources it. The enterprise saw potential in processing the fish into fillets, making it more accessible to chefs and consumers. It has since become one of the products sought by its restaurant partners.

Acevedo believes there is considerable room to expand appreciation for local seafood, particularly when consumers and restaurants tend to gravitate toward familiar or imported varieties.

‘We just want to be able to shine a light on that,’ he said, referring to the country’s rich marine resources and the many local fish that remain underappreciated.

For Endaya, working with Tindagat also means being flexible. Rather than requiring a fixed supply of particular species, he can develop dishes around what fishing communities have available.

‘I don’t want you to focus on just one thing. I want the partnership to be sustainable,’ he said.

This approach allows the kitchen to experiment with seasonal catches while helping buyers and fishers coordinate their needs.

Building livelihoods beyond the catch

TINDAGAT’S work extends beyond supplying restaurants. It also aims to equip fishing communities with the skills to manage more of the commercial process themselves.

Jaime Oyao, a fisher-entrepreneur based in Lubang, Occidental Mindoro, was among Tindagat’s pioneering fishing partners. The enterprise also works with communities in Busuanga, Palawan, and Zamboanga Sibugay, while developing initiatives in other areas, including Bantayan Island in Cebu.

Training includes not only seafood processing but also costing and bookkeeping, helping fishers better understand the value of their products and prepare to manage transactions independently.

Building this capacity takes time. Communities must learn to meet buyers’

specifications, maintain quality and fulfill orders consistently. Tindagat is working toward a model in which fishing communities can eventually manage their own operations with greater independence.

Supply remains a challenge, particularly when weather conditions disrupt fishing and affect the availability of particular species. Expanding the enterprise will require continued training, reliable cold-chain facilities, and sustained demand from restaurant partners.

The collaboration will take center stage at Lemuria in November 2026, when the restaurant showcases its partnership with Tindagat through a menu highlighting the diversity of Philippine seafood. The offerings will reflect the fish available through Tindagat, allowing Endaya to explore different varieties and develop dishes around their individual characteristics.

For diners, the collaboration offers an opportunity to discover local fish in new ways. For fishing communities, it represents a chance to connect their catch with a market that values quality, traceability, and responsible sourcing.

Ultimately, the initiative seeks to connect the people who harvest the country’s marine resources with the chefs who transform them into memorable dining experiences. By giving local fish greater visibility and fishing communities better access to markets,

Tindagat hopes to demonstrate that the value of Filipino seafood lies not only in what comes from the sea, but also in how it is handled, appreciated, and shared.