ROCAMORA FRUIT TRADING
ROCAMORA FRUIT TRADING

CASE FACTS
Mr. Lito Rocamora, proprietor of Rocamora Fruit Trading, traversed the Calapan-Divisoria route; driving all the way to Pampanga or Pangasinan to unload and sell bananas bought within Oriental Mindoro. His travel about 6.5 hours from the port of Calapan to Divisoria market. He made two trips to Divisoria market with a helper. At other times, he also delivered calamansi, mango and other fruits in season.
The banana harvested by small farmers in Oriental Mindoro are transported to “bodega’ by a tricycle or rented jeepney. Primary traders bought commodities for transport to market. Viajeros pick up the produce from traders to their target market(e.g. Divisoria-fruit trading hub for traders/viajeros). Banana shipments from the port of Calapan to Divisoria and other parts of Luzon are done at night (between 10 p.m. to 11 p.m). Since this is the coldest part of the day, it prevents deterioration. Sea travel via the roll-on, roll off ferry (Ro-Ro) takes two and a half to three hourse. At two o’clock in the morning, the transported banana arrives at the Batangas port. To reach Metro Manila, it takes another three hours. Additional hours must be allocated for transporting produce to other parts of Luzon. Oriental Mindoro bananas reach wholesalers and retailers in Divisoria at five o’clock in the morning. A couple of minutes later, bananas are in the hands of final consumers. However, improper handling of bananas affects the quality of it. From the 40,000 pieces of harvested banana(at P0.80 per piece) was reduced to 39,200 pieces of good quality bananas upon reaching his bodega. While transporting batch of bananas up to the Calapan port, the good quality bananas decreased by 1,200 pieces due to transport conditions. Bunches of bananas were piled one on top of the other. During the transfer of bananas from the