TUNA INDUSTRY
The tuna fishing industry had never been this promising and lucrative since its birth on this side of the earth-General Santos City. Lying at the head of the Sarangani Bay, the city has been dubbed the "Boom Town City of the South," and considered as one of the fastest-growing cities in the Philippines.Had it not been for its strategic geographical location and existence of other amenities needed by the fishing industry, General Santos City could not have become South Cotabato's heart of commerce and trade. Boosted with the signs of prosperity sprouting everywhere," business has never been better,".
With the advent of the operation of General Santos City Fish Port Complex, post-harvest technology equipment needed to prolong the shelf-life of tuna and other species of fish, are made available, thus playing a vital role for trading and other post harvest activities. As early as 1970, General Santos City has been tagged as the "Tuna Capital of the Philippines". The total daily catch of adult and juvenile tuna unloaded in the city can surpass that of any other fishport or even the entire unloadings of all other fish ports in the country combined (Aprieto, 1995). The city, being the sanctuary of seven (7) tuna canning factories with an average daily capacity of 750 MT per day and employs around 7,800 plant workers (GEM) the volume of catch on a per day basis is even insignificant as to the distribution of the market.
GenSan Fishport
GenSan Fishport: aerial view
(source: http://img270.imageshack.us/img270/683/fishpm9.jpg)
The construction of General Santos Fish Port Complex(GSFPC) was funded by Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund(OECF) of Japan. GSFPC is the nation's second largest fish port after Navotas, and considered the most modern in the country today. The construction started last December 1994 and finished in March 1999.
Located at Barangay Tambler, General Santos City, it is a 32-hectar lot owned by the Philippine Fisheries Development Authority(PFDA) The operationalization of the GSFPC is considered of great importance to the East Asian Growth Area(EAGA) as it is envisioned to be a major fishing post-harvest project in Mindanao area. GSFPC boast complete six -35°C cold storage with a 300 MT capacity each, 4- tons/day brine freezer; a 60 tonner ice plant and a 758 meters of landing/preparation area.
It also include 4 market halls, fish container storage yard and maintenance shop among others. The operation of GSFPC paved the way for bigger production and high quality products which is now haven for big and small fish producers/processors. With the expansion of General Santos City Fish Port Complex, the growing fishing industry in the city will be served with utmost efficiency. The expansion includes a belt conveyor fish sorting system with ancillary cargo-handling, weight bridge and telescopic boom crane, municipal fish landing wharf and a market hall and an off-site development for fisheries and related activities which will be leased to cooperatives and other interested private individual for fish processing, ice and cold storage plant, contact freezer, e.g. fencing, road pavement, drainage and water reservoir.
Indeed, These salient special features of the General Santos Fish Port Complex could well be competitive with the international fish port facilities catering the ever growing tuna industry of General Santos City.
