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Queen Pineapple Industry Profile

The Queen Pineapple (Formosa variety, Ananas comosus [Linn.] Merr.) is known as the sweetest pineapple in the world. The fruit has a distinct aromatic sweetness and crispiness, and is relatively smaller than other pineapple varieties as it only weighs around 450 grams to 950 grams. The Queen Pineapple (QP) is best eaten fresh, but it can also be used to produce fresh juice extracts, and processed into jam and dry fruit snacks. Piña cloth, used in making barongs, gowns, coin purses and pouch bags, is a customary byproduct of pineapples.

Pineapples and their products are the third largest export of the country, after banana and coconut oil. The Philippines produces around 2.7 million metric tons (MT) of pineapples annually with over 66 thousand hectares (ha) of area planted. Other varieties aside from QP are Smooth Cayenne or Hawaiian and Native Philippine Red or Red Spanish. Camarines Norte is the main producer of Queen pineapple with an estimated 3,000 farmers dependent on the industry.

Problems in the Industry

The challenges faced by the QP industry include low yield due to poor production efficiency, high incidence of pests and diseases, and high postharvest wastes and losses. The available technology, machineries and facilities are also inadequate to support production and processing of fruit during peak season.

ISP for Queen Pineapple

The PCAARRD Queen Pineapple ISP aims to increase the commodity’s competitiveness through increasing average yield (mt/ha), reducing disease and pest incidence, and reducing postharvest losses.

Strategic R&D

Technologies

Policy Research & Advocacy

Fit for a Queen: Restructuring the Philippine National Standard for Queen Pineapples

To address the concerns of QP growers and to ensure the sustainability of the QP industry, several recommendations are advocated. The first is to update the Philippine National Standard (PNS) for Fresh Pineapples, specifically to add an “extra small” size classification to QP or Formosa variety. This may also be submitted to the Provincial Board of Camarines Norte to give input to the province’s grading and trading of Queen pineapples. 

Secondly, an extensive and strategic information and education campaign to promote the CODEX and PNS for Fresh Pineapples should be implemented. This should target both pineapple farmers/producers and traders.

Adopting a new standard for QP and informing and educating key players in the industry will strengthen farmers’ bargaining power vis-a-vis traders and potential buyers. Further, this will result in more social and economic benefits and help contribute to rural poverty alleviation.

This policy brief is based on results of the DOST-PCAARRD-funded project,  Evaluation of Queen Pineapple Grades and Standards and Assessment of Implementation and Compliance in Camarines Norte as Basis for Policy Reforms and Formulations (2018). The project was implemented by Camarines Norte State College and the team was composed of Dr. Maria Cristina C. Azuelo, Mr. Jesse O. Opeña, and Ms. Kathleen Mae M. Idnani.