Mayors unite to conserve Taal Lake

Asia Africa Intelligence Wire

 | February 24, 2005 | Copyright

(From Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Byline: Mei Magsino-Lubis, Sta. Teresita, Batangas

TAAL, the deepest lake in the Philippines and the third largest with an area of 23 sq km, is being threatened by large-scale illegal fishing, inappropriate development for tourism and settlements on the Tagaytay ridge, and solid waste and agricultural runoff.

A study of the Tanggol Kalikasan (TK), a public interest environmental law office, shows that the number of floating cages of cultured tilapia and bangus (milkfish) have increased, threatening endemic species in the lake and causing pollution.

Decayed fish feeds are depleting the lake's supply of dissolved oxygen, it says, while discarded feed bags litter the waters.

The study warned that tapping a billion cubic meters of lake water for irrigation and urban use could weaken the ecosystem, which supports a variety of marine life, and restrict aquatic migration.

Realizing urgent action to counter the threats, mayors of the 10 towns and three cities

surrounding Taalsigned a covenant to conserve and protect one of the world's most active volcanoes on Jan. 26 at the Sta. Teresita municipal covered court.

The move, initiated by the TK, aimed to ensure pollution control, regulated operations of fish cages, and the apprehension of illegal fishers in the lake. Hopefully, the measures will result in the return of endemic fishes that have been on the country's list of vanishing species for decades.

Lawyer Asis Perez, TK area director, said the covenant should have been signed several years ago, but he was positive that the effort was not yet too late.

Signatories

Mayor Vilma Santos-Recto of Lipa City was the first to sign the covenant on Jan. 21. Other city mayors who signed it are Abraham Tolentino of Tagaytay and Alfredo Corona of Tanauan.

The rest of the mayor-signatories were Glorioso Martinez of Agoncillo, David Pamplona of Balete, Danilo Sombrano of Mataas na Kahoy, Adorlito Ginete of Sta. Teresita, Guillermo Reyes of Alitagtag, Enrique Comia of Cuenca, Cristeta Reyes of Malvar, Napoleon Arceo of San Nicolas, and Florencio Manimtim Jr. of Talisay.

Batangas Gov. Armando Sanchez challenged the local chief executives to put their covenant into action.

"When you signed that covenant to conserve Taal Volcano, you have already committed yourself," Sanchez told the mayors in a speech.

"In Batangas, your word means action because your governor wants things done as they should be. Gone are the days of broken promises," he added.

Environment Secretary Michael Defensor was represented by his regional director, Ernesto Adobo.

Taal Lake

Taal Lake is located within a complex volcanic area. A small volcanic island lies in the middle of thelake, which has been the site of 33 documented volcanic eruptions since 1572.

The island is a main viewing attraction of tourists from the Tagaytay ridge and Mt. Maculot.

Taal Volcano itself has a lake of its own inside the crater.

A 1927 fish inventory of Taal Lake identified 76 migratory species and many endemic species. But a 1995 study showed only 15 species of migratory fish and only four endemic fish species remaining in thelake.

In 2002, the volume of tawilis, a freshwater herring found only in Taal Lake and which the fishermen used to catch by the tons, had been reduced to less than a thousand.

The sensitive fish was the first to die due to frequent temperature changes and water pollution brought by wasted feeds in the big fish cages.

Freshwater sharks used to thrive in the lake before they were totally driven away as a result of overfishing in the 1930s.

Rosa Macas, regional director of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, said 30 percent of the fish feeds settled at the bottom of the fish cages. When the feeds rot, they deplete the oxygen level of the waters, threatening fish species.

Aside from the tawilis, the endemic fishes that are endangered are the duhol or sea snake, maliputo (freshwater mackerel), igat (freshwater eel), the three-millimeter pygmy goby (Pandaca pigmaea), apta and yapya (freshwater prawns), and the paros and suso, two types of mollusks.

Protected landscape

The government declared Taal Lake a national park on July 22, 1967, through Presidential Proclamation 235.

In 1996, it was declared a protected landscape under the National Integrated Protected Areas Systems Act.

Three lake-wide institutions authorized by different laws share the governance of the lake. These are the Protected Area Management Board (PAMB) under the protected areas law, the Integrated Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Board under the Fisheries Code, and the Lakewide Development Council.

But the only entity that has undergone a management planning was the Presidential Commission on Tagaytay-Taal in 1993, which was abolished in 2000 allegedly because the PAMB had already been created.

Because of the number of management bodies exercising overlapping jurisdictions over the lake, they are unlikely to make any dent on the major issues affecting it.

The Kilusan ng Maliliit na Mangingisda sa Lawa ng Taal, a lake-wide organization, has also been helping to conserve the lake during the last 18 years.

Batanguenos await return of 'tawilis'.

Philippine Daily Inquirer

May 16, 2002 | Copyright

Byline: Mei Magsino

TAWILIS, the world's only freshwater her ring and found only in the Taal Lake, is a vanishing species.

Tawilisan in Barangay Bihis in Sta. Teresita town in Batangas used to be the central buying station oftawilis from the fishing village of Saimsim and nearby Agoncillo town. Now, it is just a landmark.

Rogelio Bathan, 55, Saimsim barangay chair, said he and other fishermen used to haul as much as two tons of tawilis from the lake in 1965. But since then first lady Imelda Marcos and the then Bureau of Fisheries dumped thousands of carp fingerlings into the lake in 1970, the tawilis population has slowly diminished.

May is the month of the tawilis in Saimsim, when the fish is abundant in the lake. But up to now, Bathan said he had seen only a few fish.

"Last week, a fisherman caught eight tawilis," Bathan said. "That has so far been the biggest catch these days." Last year, the biggest haul was only 20 kilos.

Tawilisan is now a buying center for tilapia and bangus (milkfish).

"Maybe we should start calling it Tilapiaan, now that only tilapia is (being) sold here," said Angelito Gumapac, 42, Bihis barangay chair.

But even the tilapia and milkfish no longer come from Saimsim. "We buy our fish now from Pulo," Bathan said, "and it is expensive." Pulo is the Taal Volcano island in the middle of the crater lake.

Precious

Gloria Bathan (not related to Rogelio), 50, a fish vendor in Tawilisan, said the herring has been rarely sold in the area.

Sometimes, she would find a fisherman selling as many as 20 tawilis, which she peddles to households for P2 apiece. It is the first fish to be sold out in the morning, she said.

"Like the INQUIRER here, you can no longer buy tawilis beyond 8 a.m.," she said.

Ernesto Martija, 34, a tawilis vendor from Balete town, said the fish catch started to dwindle in 1997.

"Now, the tawilis in Balete is as precious as gold," Martija said. "Back in 1996, we could buy freshtawilis for P50 a kilogram, but now the price has tripled and quadrupled."

These days, the tawilis, small as it is, is sold at P2 apiece, he said.

The owner of the only restaurant that serves fried or roasted tawilis twice a week, the Rose and Grace Bulalo restaurant in Sto. Tomas town, said the tawilis is now so rare that they have to go as far as Balete, some 40 kilometers away, to buy the fish.

Vanishing

Tawilis (Herrengula sp.) was once abundant in Batangas. Fishing towns around the Taal Lake-which include Sta. Teresita, Agoncillo, San Nicolas, Talisay, Balete, Tanauan and Laurel-enjoyed the biggest bounty of tawilis catch from the lake.

The yellowish fish was up to six inches long, its meat tender and belly oozing with fat. Its bones were so soft that one can gobble up an entire fish-fried, roasted or cooked as sinigang with sampaloc or kalamyas.

Now, Balete fishermen could catch only a few fish, whose length is only three inches. The meat is tough with no belly fat.

Vilma Mortel, assistant provincial agriculturist based in the capitol in Batangas City, said the vanishing tawilis has been a long-time problem of the province.

"The unconsumed and decomposing fish feeds that settle at the bottom of the lake might have caused the decrease in population. But we're still studying it," Mortel said.

"We have started regulating (fishing activities) and we have already minimized the construction of fish cages in the Taal Lake."

Since the fish culture trend in the early '90s, more fish cages have been constructed in the lake, contributing to the gradual disappearance of the fish, he said.

Only 10 percent of the lake area is designated for fish cages, but some owners constructed pens even in areas that were declared fish sanctuaries.

"We have coordinated with local government units to stop (the construction of) those illegal fish cages," said provincial agriculturist Virgilio Mercado.

Since their office imposed the restriction, operations of 30 percent of the illegal fish cages have stopped, he said.

The fish cages along the Pansipit River have also blocked other herrings such as the dumpilas and manamse, which used to migrate from the Balayan Bay, passing through the river, to breed in the Taal Lake.

Since the bigger herrings could not breed with the tawilis, the latter began in-breeding, resulting in a smaller, tough-skinned and white freshwater species that have replaced what used to be Batangas' pride.

Illegal fishing

Sta. Teresita Mayor Adordito Ginete said he was trying to prevent the total extinction of the tawilis.

"The problem is illegal fishing." Ginete said, "Our fishermen use nets that can catch even the smalltawilis."

Gov. Hermilando Mandanas said a "Sagip Tawilis Movement" has been formed, involving the provincial and the local government units.

On March 6, a meeting was held among leaders of the movement, concerned government officials, fish cage operators and representatives of municipal agricultural offices of towns around the lake.

Mandanas ordered the revocation of business permits of big fish cages operators and financiers to protect the small fish cage owners, and the strict implementation of the campaign against illegal fishing.

Eddie Medina, 51, of Tawilisan said the tawilis has slowly vanished since 1970 when Mrs. Marcos and the then Bureau of Fisheries dumped thousands of carp fingerlings into the lake.

"The carps started eating the tawilis," Medina said. "Even if the carps of Imelda grew as much as 10 kilos each, our tawilis catch became less and less."

What remained of the giant carps are now called karpita or small carps that are only as long as six inches.

Climate

Mercado said the changing climate and temperature of the Taal Lake have also contributed to the vanishing tawilis.

"When the water is cool on the surface and hot at the bottom, the tawilis can't survive the drastic change.

"Also, overpopulation in the fishing villages didn't allow for the tawilis to grow and breed," Mercado said.

The tawilis, unlike tilapia and bangus, cannot be artificially bred as they die immediately once they are out of the water.

"With the tawilis, we have to wait until they breed naturally. They cannot survive artificial breeding," Mercado said.

"For now, we have coordinated with the town mayors to implement our drive to stop illegal fishers and to rid the Pansipit River of fish cages. But for now, we have to wait. And it will be a long wait."

Don't laugh, bignay is really 'hard' wood.

Don't laugh, bignay is really 'hard' wood.

Asia Africa Intelligence Wire

 | April 10, 2003 | Copyright

(From Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Byline: Mei Magsino

NASUGBU, Batangas -Here is good news for men who can't, shall we say, rise to the occasion.

From the lowly bignay tree that grows in the mountains and which farmers use for firewood, farmer Clarito Caisip, 43, has found a solution for erectile dysfunction: a herbal tea that could rival Viagra, but one without any side effects.

"A friend of mine, Cosmelito de la Cuesta, whom we call Happy, taught me to use bignay bark as herbal tea," Clarito said. "Later, I added the leaves, stem and wood of the bignay tree to make tea and gave some of it to friends who found the tea a refreshing drink."

When a 65-year-old male neighbor who was a widower came back to ask for more tea and told Clarito that, old as he was, there was renewed vigor in his sex life since he started drinking the concoction, Clarito knew he was on to something big.

"To tell you the truth, my old friend's experience is not new. I have also been experiencing a much stronger sexual vitality since I started drinking the bignay tea," Clarito said. "Some people laughed, but after laughing, they would ask for the tea."

Even Clarito's wife, Antonette, 53, claimed to enjoy renewed sexual vitality since drinking the tea. For one thing, she looks 20 years younger.

Doubts at first

But the couple admitted to having doubts at first about the bignay tea.

On Dec. 23 last year, Clarito started drinking the tea he formulated. He started gathering wood, stems, leaves and bark of the bignay tree and dried them outside their home in Camp Avejar, Barangay Lumbagan, in this town.

"Before, I was the only one who wanted to drink the tea," Clarito said. "Then our youngest son, Jairry, started drinking a liter every day. He even took the tea to school and drank it like water. Since then, he has been always adjudged as an A-1 child whose academic performance has also improved a lot."

Then Antonette followed her husband and son's practice and started drinking the bignay tea.

"I used to doubt the power of that tea because when I was a child, I thought that bignay was poisonous," Antonette said. "But later on, I learned that the female bignay, not the male, is poisonous. And my husband has been using the male bignay tree for tea."

When she started drinking the tea, Antonette said she felt decades younger.

"And I always feel very happy and content," Antonette added.

Cure-all

"But the bignay tea doesn't work just to give you a renewed sex life," Antonette said, "It's also a cure-all. My father-in-law's arthritis was cured when he drank the tea for one month. Another female friend said her diabetes was cured since she started drinking the bignay tea."

Even Clarito's brother, Victoriano, 47, a mechanic who works in Italy and has arthritis, claimed to have been cured when he drank the bignay tea for two weeks straight.

Like Clarito, his addiction to alcohol was also cured.

In their one-and-a-half-hectare property, where different crops and trees grow, Clarito and Antonette also raise swine. But it is the tea that they are now known for.

"Since (we guested on TV shows), strangers would always wave at us and more people keep coming to our house to buy the tea," Antonette said.

When more people came to buy the tea, the couple decided to pack the dried ground mix into 50- and 100-gram packs.

Now, a 50-gram pack costs P50 while a 100-gram pack costs P100. A tablespoon of the dried bignay tea mix can produce six glasses of the tea.

Clarito and Antonette always carry an extra pack of the tea whenever they take the product to the market.

"What's also good in this tea is that it's pure herbal, with no side effects," Clarito said, "and it comes from all over the mountainous areas of the town; sometimes, the tree grows in the farms and backyards."

Preservation

Since Clarito sources the raw materials of his tea from the farmers who live in the mountains, he started the "Save the Bignay Tree" movement, in an effort to save the trees that some farmers used to cut down for firewood.

Since he met with all the members of the Samahan ng mga Magsasaka sa Kanlurang Batangas (Samakaba), a farmers' group that he now chairs, he taught his fellow farmers how to take care of the bignay trees and how to propagate them.

This coming rainy season, the group is planning to plant a thousand bignay seedlings in the mountains of Western Batangas.

"The campaign has also given the farmers a new source of income, while learning the uses of the bignay tree that sometimes grow even in their backyards," Clarito said, "and I don't have a false humility to say that we're just doing this to save the trees. We need it for business and to help the farmers get an alternative source of income."

Clarito said he used only the male bignay tree for the tea.

"The bark of the female bignay tree is poisonous. But the male bignay tree comes from its seeds. I have also learned to differentiate the two. The female tree bears fruits while the male does not," Clarito said.

The bignay tree (Antidesma bunius spreng) grows all over Southeast Asia, lower Himalayas in India, Sri Lanka and Australia and is abundant in the Philippines.

For years, its sour-sweet fruits have been eaten by children and adults. Some people even turn the fruits into jellies and jams.

In Indonesia and the Philippines, old folks eat the leaves in raw form or stewed with rice.

In Nasugbu, the bignay bark is boiled and its tea was used by the old folks to cure stomach pains.

But it was only Clarito who experimented with the mix of wood, leaves, bark and stems as tea. And the result is what his grateful clients describe as the local Viagra with no side effects.

American wants 50,000 units of Fantastic Kalan.

Asia Africa Intelligence Wire

 | January 24, 2003 | Copyright

(From Philippine Daily Inquirer)

SAN JOSE, Batangas-After the Inquirer Sundaybiz story on the Fantastic Kalan and its inventor came out, the little business was deluged with inquiries.

The potentially biggest order came from the United States.

In an e-mail message to Fantastic Kalan inventor Thomas Anceno, an American businesswoman said she planned to get at least 50,000 units of the stove, which she planned to resell to big stores in the US for the summer season.

The American offer was the biggest Anceno has received since the Inquirer story came out on Jan. 5. Another big order came from a group of restaurants, which wanted 800 units of the kalan.

Wallander's e-mail came on the afternoon of Jan. 10, just as Anceno finished his demonstration at the office of a local burger chain in Lucena City where the Filipino-Chinese owner ordered 800 units of Fantastic Kalan.

"Oh my God!" was Anceno's first reaction as he pinched his arm, "Is this really happening?"

The big volume of the American businesswoman's order could mean substantial sales if successfully sold in the US.

Fantastic Kalan sells for between P1,000 and P2,900, depending on the quality of the stainless steel used in making the body of the stove.

"But we are just talking of the US," Anceno said, "Orders from Canada, Europe, Australia and Asia could still come."

Anceno said he still has to patent the design of his stove in the US to keep copycats at bay. He invented the stove only in August last year.

Fantastic Kalan is the only charcoal stove with a fan and combines the fast-cooking advantages of a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) stove and the economical benefits of a peso-saving charcoal stove.

It can use wood chips, fresh coconut shells, charcoal, or any hard combustible materials for fuel and can cook fast.

Using the stove, a cup of charcoal can cook a kilo or more of rice as the heat it can generate reaches up to as high as 500 degrees Celsius.

Anceno invented the stove by accident when his attempt to manufacture activated carbon used in filtering tap water failed.

He was about to burn all the charcoal materials for the failed invention when the simple principle of furnace fire used by blacksmiths in making knives and garden tools gave him the idea to create the stove.

Seeking gov't help

He said he also plans to seek the help of the local government and the Department of Trade and Industry to start the mass production of the Fantastic Kalan that he used to produce on a per order basis.

"I could also tap the local labor force of San Jose to manufacture the stove," Anceno said, "This project can help a lot of out-of-school youths and jobless college graduates."

Anceno said he may tap graduates of the Technical Education Skills and Development Administration in the mass production of the Fantastic Kalan.

Inquiries from all over

A day after the story came out of the veterinarian who invented a peso-saving stove, Anceno started getting calls from people who read it.

"Clients who were interested to buy Fantastic Kalan even went to Bahay Bibingka to ask where they can find me in Barangay Pinagtung-Ulan," Anceno said.

Bahay Bibingka is located in Lipa City and is about eight kilometers away from Pinagtung-Ulan.

Anceno lives in Barangay Pinagtung-Ulan, this town, where his Fantastic Kalan shop is located in the backyard of their home.

People from all over Batangas province who had read the story also called this correspondent to know Anceno's contact number and address.

They all bought the stove.

The Inquirer main office in Makati city, and its website INQ7 were deluged with queries.

Anceno has been getting calls from Davao and Cebu.

"I don't know how to thank the Inquirer for what the newspaper has done to my invention," Anceno said, "I never thought Fantastic Kalan could get such wide popularity. I think it's time to have my own brochure."

Cost-saving choice to LPG

The Fantastic Kalan story came in time when the price of the LPG went up and people have been starting to look for a better and cost-saving alternative to the LPG stove.

"I'm planning to demonstrate what my stove can do to Energy Secretary Vince Perez," Anceno said. "That way, we can help the Filipinos save more pesos on LPG consumption and somehow help the economy," he added.

Anceno said he also plans to go all the way to Malacanang and ask for the President's assistance.

"I think the government should support Fantastic Kalan as this is a product of Filipino ingenuity and can help us lessen our dependence on petroleum," he said. Mei Magsino, PDI Southern Luzon Bureau

Veterinarian develops peso-saving stove.

Asia Africa Intelligence Wire

 | January 05, 2003 | Copyright

(From Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Byline: Mei Magsino

SAN JOSE, Batangas-As local oil companies have either implemented or planned to implement another round of price increases, households using liquefied petroleum gas have found an ally in a 47-year-old veterinarian who has invented an alternative cooking equipment.

From one failed invention, Thomas Anceno has developed a stove that combines the economy of a charcoal stove and the fast-cooking capacity of a gas stove.

"I was about to burn the raw materials of my failed invention when suddenly the idea of furnace fire flashed into my mind and then I started working on the furnace principle," Anceno said. "What I invented is a stove, which I call the Fantastic Kalan, that cooks fast and saves more time and money."

His invention has already traveled throughout the country and is being used by many farm-based households and city dwellers.

Accidental

Born and raised in General Santos City, Anceno came to Lipa City in 1998. A veterinary graduate of the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City, he had worked in big poultry and piggery farms before deciding to stay in Lipa City where his family now lives.

The city abounds with poultry and piggery farms that seek his veterinary expertise.

Anceno has been inventing gadgets the past years. His company, now registered at the Securities and Exchange Commission under First Pacific Winds, has for its first invention a roof ventilator, which he uses in his own home and sells until now.

The Fantastic Kalan started in August this year, according to Anceno. But he did not intend to make a stove.

"My intention was to discover a simple method to manufacture activated carbon used in filtering tap water," Anceno said. "I just followed the instructions I downloaded from the Internet. The result was clean water but it tastes like burned charcoal and smells like burned rice. It was a complete failure."

Then Anceno called his friend from the Philippine Science High School and asked him why the procedure he used had failed.

"Instead of inspiring me, he advised me just to buy the finished product because the machine that makes activated carbon costs millions," Anceno says, adding that he felt so frustrated then.

Disappointed, Anceno was contemplating on burning the charcoal he thought was useless.

"Then the flame from the furnace used by blacksmiths in making knives and garden tools flashed into my mind. That simple principle of furnace burning gave me the idea. I started to make a prototype using my five-year-old son's remote-controlled toy," Anceno says.

He got the motor of his son's remote-controlled car and put the small plastic propeller inside an empty can of evaporated milk.

He then fit the can into an empty square biscuit can with a hole on the side and had the top off to make the stove and installed the fan side and the small can in the biscuit can.

For the propeller to work, he had to use electricity.

The propeller then blew air that got into the air chamber and fanned the ignited charcoal, burning the fuel fast.

The continuous supply of air (oxygen) boosts the combustion of the charcoal further.

"When we tested the stove using charcoal, the fire exploded to almost two feet," Anceno says. From the prototype, he improved the design into three models. And from there, he started to sell the Fantastic Kalan.

"I called it Fantastic Kalan because it is the only stove that uses a fan," Anceno says.

Difficulty

One thing that Anceno found hard in marketing his invention is the difficulty to explain and make sure that the people could understand the principle used in his invention.

"Later I found a good strategy to make the people understand what this stove is all about. I did an actual demonstration that one cup of charcoal can cook a kilo of rice," Anceno says. "Now, some of my clients say they can even cook two kilos of rice."

Anceno had the Fantastic Kalan patented on Sept. 3. He has since sold more than a hundred units of Fantastic Kalan all over the country.

With concentrated heat of more than 500 degrees Celsius, Fantastic Kalan combines the inexpensive cooking capability of a charcoal stove with the fast cooking capability of a gas stove.

Its charcoal container is made of firebricks that can stand up to 1,300 degrees Celsius of heat.

With the improved version, Fantastic Kalan now has three models.

The one with 90-percent stainless steel costs P1,500, while the double burner costs P2,900.

The low-cost version with 20-percent stainless steel costs P1,000.

"Fantastic Kalan is the only stove with a fan and, at the same time saves fuel, cooks fast, and is very hot. That's why it's really fantastic," Anceno said.

"It's the only stove where you can use fresh firewood and coconut shell as fuel. And it is not even messy."

Fantastic Kalan has been featured on television before. The only problem is that the host called it Superkalan.

Anceno has a regular radio-guesting every Saturday and Sunday as a veterinarian in Kabukiran, an afternoon radio program of dzMM.

"One time, while I was there, I aired to my clients to meet me at the gate of the broadcast studio at 7 p.m.," Anceno says, "I didn't know that more people who heard that became interested. When I went out to meet my clients, there were more people who wanted me to demonstrate what the Fantastic Kalan can do. So, I did the demonstration right outside the ABS-CBN gate."

That time, a production assistant of Knowledge Power saw Anceno's demonstration and immediately featured Fantastic Kalan and Anceno in the television program.

"But my excitement faded when Ernie Baron mentioned Superkalan not Fantastic Kalan," Anseno says. "Fantastic Kalan is different from Superkalan because it has a fan."

Anseno says there have been many people who still mistake his stove for Superkalan.

Advantages

"The advantages of Fantastic Kalan is that you can save a lot of fuel because you can use wood chips, fresh coconut shells, charcoal, or any hard combustible material," Anseno says.

He claimed that his product is even recommended in households, restaurants, blacksmith shops, jewelry shops, fiestas and special occasions.

For those who live in farms where dried wood and coconut shells abound, they could save a lot if they use Fantastic Kalan, Anseno adds.

"I think the biggest success of my stove is that you can use cheap fuel with fast cooking time. Ordinary charcoal stove takes time to ignite and cook. With Fantastic Kalan, igniting and cooking is fast," Anseno says.

In Lipa city, one of his biggest clients is Bahay Bibingka. The bibingka (rice cakes) makers have reduced the cooking time for their product to 80 percent and saved more on the fuel consumption.

Anceno also has plans of expansion.

"Given the chance, I plan to saturate Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao to save on liquified petroleum gas consumption that will eventually help Filipinos to save dollars on LPG."