DAVAO CITY (September 23) — Davao Region is expanding its coffee industry on the back of rising demand for local specialty beans, but the bigger test for the government’s coffee program is whether the industry’s growth is translating into higher and more reliable incomes for farmers.
The Department of Agriculture-Davao Region (DA-XI) and the Davao Region Coffee Council said Monday that coffee production in the region continues to increase, keeping Davao as the country’s second-largest coffee-producing region.
DA-XI Agricultural Center chief John Paul Matuguinas said the market for local specialty coffee is growing as consumers become more conscious of quality and increasingly willing to pay premium prices.
“Our production in Davao Region is on a steady increase as farmers see the strong potential of coffee as a high-value crop,” Matuguinas said.
But higher prices at the consumer end do not automatically mean higher earnings for growers.
Matuguinas said consumers are increasingly willing to pay more for quality coffee, raising a fundamental question for the industry: how much of that premium reaches the farmer who produces the beans?
National coffee production remains at less than 30,000 metric tons, according to Matuguinas, leaving a supply gap as domestic consumption rises.
That gap represents an opportunity for Davao farmers—but only if increased production comes with better farmgate prices, lower production costs and stronger bargaining power in the market.
P37 million in interventions
The DA has institutionalized a Coffee Industry Development Office and allocated more than P37 million for coffee interventions in Davao Region.
The funding covers planting materials, fertilizers, training, and post-harvest machinery and equipment.
These investments are intended to increase production and improve the quality and value of locally produced coffee.
But for farmers, the measure of success goes beyond the number of seedlings distributed, trainings conducted or machines deployed.
It is whether these interventions result in higher yields, better-quality beans, reduced post-harvest losses and, most importantly, higher net income at the farm level.
The government and industry stakeholders therefore face an accountability challenge: as public funds are invested in expanding coffee production, farmers should be able to see a measurable improvement in what they actually earn from their crop.
Who captures the specialty-coffee premium?
The growing specialty-coffee market offers farmers the possibility of earning more from quality beans.
Matuguinas said consumers are increasingly prepared to pay higher prices when they recognize coffee quality.
“Most of our consumers right now are aware of the quality, so they will tend to buy at higher prices if they feel the coffee has good quality,” he said.
That makes quality improvement and market access critical.
If farmers remain primarily suppliers of raw beans while the greater value is captured through processing, branding, roasting and retail, the expansion of the coffee industry could benefit the broader value chain without producing a comparable increase in farm income.
The government’s interventions in processing technology and enterprise development therefore need to be accompanied by mechanisms that allow farmers to participate more fully in the value chain.
Youth, technology and the next generation
These issues will be highlighted during the Regional Coffee Expo 2026 in Davao de Oro on October 1 to 3, which is expected to gather about 300 farmers, entrepreneurs, government representatives and industry stakeholders.
Davao Coffee Council Vice President Shosi Mari Salubre Larido said the three-day event will feature plenary sessions, latte art and brewing competitions, demonstrations of DA-funded processing technology and a coffee tour.
Two full scholarships for youth training in coffee processing will also be announced.
The Young Farmers Challenge will encourage young people to enter coffee production and related enterprises.
The push is significant for an industry that needs both new growers and entrepreneurs. But attracting young people to coffee will ultimately depend on whether they see agriculture as a viable livelihood—not simply as an industry promoted through government programs.
Davao de Oro bets on premium beans
Davao de Oro was selected as this year’s host province because of its potential for premium coffee production.
Larido said its elevation is comparable to Balutakay in Davao del Sur, one of the region’s established coffee-growing areas.
“We are also promoting Davao de Oro’s potential sa kape, in terms of quality, kay parehas ra siyag elevation sa diri sa atong Davao del Sur, which is the Balutakay,” she said.
Authorities also cited measures such as solar-powered pump irrigation systems and assessments for possible cloud seeding to help protect farms from climate-related risks.
But climate protection is only part of the equation.
For Davao’s coffee farmers, the real bottom line is whether government support can help them produce more, lose less, sell at better prices and capture a larger share of the value created by the coffee boom.
With more than P37 million in public interventions and a growing market for specialty coffee, the industry’s progress should ultimately be visible not only in production figures and industry events—but in farmers’ farmgate earnings and household incomes.
