DILIMAN, Quezon City — Grapes are not the only fruits that could be made into a good wine as cashew, dragon fruit, guava, mango, pineapple, and many others can also be used.

Highlighting the economic potential of Philippine fruits, the Agricultural Training Institute (ATI) held a free seminar on wine-making last September 8, 2017 at the ATI Serrano Hall. It was attended by around 170 participants from different regions including Metro Manila, CALABARZON, and Central Luzon and provinces like Antique, Isabela, Pangasinan, and Western Samar.

Wine entrepreneur and ATI ISO Team Member Omer Taposok and Ernesto Perlas of the “Perlas ng Palayan” farm in Nueva Ecija were the speakers during the event. Taposok shared some tips on how to start a wine business. He emphasized that a farmer-entrepreneur should use their time and available resources in a profitable way.

Meanwhile, Perlas encouraged the attendees to start small when venturing into the business and emphasized that wine-making makes for a great investment. He said that its perishability is not an issue because the taste of wine gets better in the passing of time and that, when the process fails, it can still be processed into vinegar.

A demonstration on wine-making was also held during the seminar. Taposok showed how to make pineapple wine while Perlas used dragon fruit. They both stressed on the accurate measurement of ingredients and of heating to perfectly produce wine from these fruits.

At the end of the seminar, participants were thankful for the Institute’s effort in reaching out to its clients. Freddie Rigor, 36, from Isabela was glad to know that there is no need for him to buy wine, for he can produce his own using existing fruits in his locality.

Forty-one-year-old Nathaniel Casas from Catbalogan Samar, who currently ventures into coco sap and rice wine, said that he came to the seminar to know the exact formula in making fruit wine for he plans to add this as part of his business.

As the extension and training arm of the Department of Agriculture, the ATI conducts free monthly seminars on different agricultural practices and technologies. There are still four more to watch out for including those on cacao production and processing, rice-based processing, mushroom production, and backyard fish farming and processing.