NEGROS ORIENTAL, July 22 (PIA) – The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) here has opened the Shared Service Facility (SSF) worth more than P6 million at Foundation University (FU), Dumaguete City.
DTI’s partnership with FU aims to boost productivity and efficiency of small medium enterprises (SMEs) in the province using this facility, DTI Provincial Director Javier Fortunato said.
“This facility helps push local entrepreneurs to process more food products than can prolong shelf life or preserved without refrigeration,” said Fortunato.
The retorting equipment installed at FU campus is the main processing chamber wherein the packed food is sterilized as well as cooked properly to meet FDA standards that may be exported.
Fortunato said the main purpose is “to help SMEs to produce more food quality products made in Negros Oriental and can go across other places or abroad, but this facility also can help emergency food during calamities.”
The university will provide assistance needed by local food industry in various testing requirements of food products which include daily, ready-to-eat snacks, and other agricultural products.
The collaboration with the academe or FU as the food development center and the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) would help come up product research and development and reliable food analyses.
The SSF project of DTI also aims to accelerate SMEs competitiveness by providing them access to energy-efficient technology and encourage them to play in the global market. (rmn/jct/PIA7-Negros Oriental)