The Department of Trade and Industry in Negros Occidental said the demand for mulberry farmers is high and can supply the raw materials for silk yarn and thread production.

Engiemar Tupas, acting business development division chief of DTI, said yesterday that about 250 farmers in Negros are planting mulberry which is the basic food nutrient for silk worms that are fed 24 hours.

When they develop into cocoons, they are harvested and processed in the reeling plant to produce the silk yarn and silk thread which are the main materials for barong and shawls, Tupas added.

He said the Organization for Industrial, Spiritual, and Cultural Advancement Bago City is the sole producer of silk in the Philippines.

He said OISCA needs more farmers to plant mulberry because the present volume of raw materials is not enough to supply the demands of Aklan and Ilolilo market.

There is also a high demand for hand loom weavers to work on the silk materials to make new products like barong and shawl, he said.

DTI is conducting a 10-day training on hand loom weaving at the OISCA training center in Bago City that started last week and will end tomorrow, he said.

OISCA had requested for the training and when the participants meet the required skills, they will hire them.

He said the group needs to have a steady workforce to meet the demand for silk products.*LTG

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