Ube is worth $595M globally. Why is Philippines capturing just $3 million?

MANILA, Philippines — Citing the spread of Philippine ube varieties abroad, the head of a national ube industry group has called on the Department of Agriculture to strictly enforce the suspension on fresh purple yam exports.

Chester Velasco, president of the United Ube PH Federation, said neighboring countries have been acquiring fresh ube and cultivating the crop themselves.

"As of 2025, the global valuation is around $595 million, and our share is only $3 million. We're not the number one exporter of ube. That's the sad reality," Chester Velasco, president of the United Ube PH Federation, said on One News' "The Big Story" on Saturday, October 24.

Velasco also described attempts at what he called "food fraud," where ube grown in other countries is marketed as products of the Philippines.

"There are also instances where they market it as Philippine ube even if it was locally grown in China or Vietnam," Velasco said.

For Velasco, the export restriction, which applies only to fresh ube, should effectively counter smuggling. Processed products such as ube powder, extract and halaya may still be exported.

"They should be stricter in implementing the ban because, as you said, it's so easy to smuggle," he said.

These concerns come as global demand for the crop grows while local farmers face limited access to planting materials, making it difficult for the Philippine industry to keep pace.

The United States was the biggest market for Philippine ube products, accounting for nearly half of the country's exports that year.

China and Vietnam, however, have also expanded their own production to meet the demand, Velasco said.

"Unfortunately, our neighboring countries, like China and Vietnam, have been importing fresh ube and growing it. This is what they have been doing. Vietnam has really been aggressive in growing and producing ube," Velasco said.

To support its production in the Philippines, the U.S. Department of Agriculture recently announced a development award of $34.1 million. Implemented by US-based organization TechnoServe, the fund is expected to support 12,500 Filipino ube farmers over the next five years.

The project also complements a separate P300-million government initiative to expand production by doubling crop planting areas. 

Struggle with planting materials, low prices

The lack of planting materials remains one of the industry's biggest constraints. These include seedlings, tubers, setts and tissue-cultured planting materials, Velasco said.

He explained that some farmers sell their entire harvest instead of setting aside portions of ube tubers for propagation, further constraining the next planting cycle.

The industry is also dealing with uneven access to buyers.

In Romblon, Velasco said the federation encountered farmers selling ube for as little as P20 to P40 per kilo, discouraging some from planting again.

To address this, the group is promoting contract-growing arrangements that assure farmers of buyers and agreed prices.

"When there's a sudden change, we stick with that price. When the price goes up, we can negotiate. But when it goes down, we don't reduce it," Velasco said.

He said the arrangement gives farmers greater certainty that their harvest will be bought and encourages them to continue planting.

The industry also needs to improve production standards and certifications to meet export-market requirements, including organic, halal, HACCP and good manufacturing practice standards, Velasco said.

The federation, formed about three months ago, brings together farmers, growers, processors, manufacturers, exporters, academe and government agencies in an effort to consolidate what Velasco described as a fragmented ube industry.