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DOST eyes commercialization of 'tubho tea' industry in Batanes

By Villamor Visaya, Jr.

September 11, 2020, 3:59 pm

TUGUEGARAO CITY – The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) in Cagayan Valley has pledged to commercialize the traditional "tubho" tea industry of the Ivatans aside from boosting its production.

Dr. Sancho Mabborang, DOST regional director, in a message on Friday, said the planned commercialization would not be immediate due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19 pandemic and the need “to improve the quality and packaging of the product”.

Earlier, portable solar drying panels have been provided to a local processor in Sabtang town.

Ivatan tea enthusiasts in Sabtang boil dried fronds until the water turns dark brown. They serve the tea hot after removing the leaves. They advise reusing the leaves as long as they still turn the water dark brown when boiled.

"The solar panels are now being used for drying facilities of the association to improve the quality of their produce," he said.

He added that online trainings on tubho processing were also initiated to develop other products from the plant.

Tubho, an endemic fern, is dried and used as a substitute for coffee. It is believed to have antioxidant properties.

Tubho tea is made from mature tubho fronds that have wilted and dried while still on the plant. Ivatans prefer these because they are less bitter.

Believing that tubho tea is the secret to their longevity and has medicinal benefits, Ivatans love to drink it, Mabborang said.

While it is not cultivated, tubho tea is harvested from the wild in Batanes in small quantities, particularly in the southernmost Sabtang islands. They are also sold to tourists, though some restaurants in other parts of the Philippines already serve it as part of their menus, researches said.

Tubho tea is traditionally sweetened with brown sugar, and like tea lovers, the Ivatans said the tea can also be consumed with cream, honey, or lemon.

But to younger local connoisseurs, they like it best when tubho tea is served in modern versions, preferably with ice. They describe the taste of the tea as slightly bitter and nutty.

In 2017, the DOST had introduced the powdered tubho packed in tea bags in the one-town, one-product or OTOP program of Sabtang municipality in collaboration with the Batanes provincial government and other line agencies.

Since then, an affiliate group of the Sabtang Food Processors Association called the Sabtang Tubho Processors continued to manufacture and market tubho tea as the primary product of the association. (PNA)

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