Rizalie Anding Calibo
SIQUIJOR, Sept. 21 (PIA)
--- Baking delicious breads must be beyond ordinary. This is
Elena Ibera’s motto when it comes to baking breads.
Having a natural passion for baking
breads, cakes and pastries, Ibera, who is the proprietor of Elena’s Bakery and
Pasalubong Center, made that as a foundation for establishing the business.
“While others venture in business
which they do not even know, I personally bake and supervise the processing of
my products. The edge of my products among competitors lays in their
distinct taste that only Elena’s offers. That’s a family secret, of
course," says Elena.
During town fiestas in the province,
her products are always in demand. Those yearly events became the stepping
stone of her firm. Every year, orders pour in that her usual capacity
cannot meet the demands. To remedy this, her sister tried to approach
some government agencies for assistance.
When they went to the Technical
Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) in Lazi, the agency directed
her to go to the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) in Siquijor to
avail of the Small Enterprise technology Upgrading Program (SET-UP). Upon
request of the firm and upon complying with the requirements, Elena’s Bakery
and Pasalubong Center became a recipient of DOST SETUP in 2012. The assistance
was designed to upgrade its baking technology to enhance product quality and
its competitiveness.
Specifically, planetary mixer,
spiral mixer, a four-decker baking oven, manual sealer, stainless top table,
bread slicer, roll kneader were purchased based on the SETUP
recommendation. Product packaging and labeling also became part of the
assistance. As counterpart of the assistance, a new processing area was
built by the firm to house the new SETUP equipment.
With these interventions, the
product shelf life of Elena's products increased. The new oven enabled the
firm to operate efficiently with gas consumption reduced by 20%. Production
volume also increased by 50%, exceeding the target of 30%.Consequently, the
revenue also increased by 30%.
With SETUP’s intervention, the
current production of Elena’s Bakery and Pasalubong Center is able to cope up
with the demand. It has also made Enrique Villanueva a name in Siquijor
tourism by offering delicious breads and pastries as
pasalubongs. (rmn/rac/PIA7-Siquijor with reports from Engr. Reinhold
Jek Abing/DOST-Siquijor)
- See more at:
http://news.pia.gov.ph/article/view/1131442818920/feature-elena-s-baked-success#sthash.wL5jdOXP.dpuf