DOST 7 SET-UP Product Catalogue - DOST 7! - Department of ...

GIJ Foods
The Persevering “I”
It all started over bottles of beer for these three “barkada” – Giovanni, Irvin and John. Hence, the name GIJ
Foods. However, the business that was initially established by three friends ended in the lap of one; the two
had other plans. Thus, the start of GIJ with only the “I.”
Irvin Ingking and his wife Jocelyn continued the business
that would otherwise have been forgotten. They
made arrangements with G and J to slowly buy their
shares. They kept the name since this was already
registered in 1997. It was not difficult for them to
manage this kind of business since Jocelyn had been
exposed to baking early in college. In less than two
years, they saw the market potential of their products.
In that same year, the mani con leche peanut crackers
and crunches were out in the market, with the mani
con leche, being the best seller.
After two years, ube-based products were sold– ube
cheese pie, ube cheese sticks, ube cakes. Also added
were the peanut sticks, peanut frosted cookies and
butter cookies.
In 2001, the ube-cheese cake won the grand prize
as the best ube product during the 2001 Ube Festival,
a yearly activity designed to develop the ube industry
of Bohol. In 2004, two of its products- ube toasted
mammon and ube rosquillos- were also among the
winners in the festival.
However, through the years, the demand for ubebased
products waned. In lieu of these, other
products were developed and sold- otap, toasted
pie and cheese pie.
As a recipient of MPEX, GIJ was already aware of
DOST. So when SET-UP came, application for
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DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY VII
Product Catalogue 2011
assistance came naturally. And with it, came the equipment
recommended by the MPEX Study to enhance
production- peanut roaster, peanut granulator, mani
con leche molder, and storage racks with casters.
Originally, peanuts were baked while continuously
mixing it for four hours. This process not only takes
time but also generates a lot of heat and the resulting
peanuts are not evenly baked. With the peanut roaster,
baking is no longer done. And the peanuts are evenly
roasted in only 15 minutes. Aside from the gas saved,
the cooking process is not as inconvenient as in the
previous method used.
“Kaniadto, dukdukon ang peanuts, just like pounding
of rice,” explains Jocelyn. This process is not recommended
by the MPEX Consultants since the oil which
comes out from crushing, contributes to the early
deterioration of the product. With the peanut granulator,
peanuts are evenly granulated, requires less time
to complete and much more can be processed.
Molding the mixture posed another bottleneck in
production. Mixed ingredients are scooped into the
wooden molder set on a tray. With the mani con leche
molder, molding is done faster and outputs are more
than doubled. The storage racks with casters allow
for easy safekeeping of processed products.
Aside from the equipment purchased through the
project and the corresponding trainings on equipment
operation, improved packaging and skills upgrading
of the workers were also part of the DOST assistance.
Trainings were conducted on Good Manufacturing
Practices (GMP) and Hazard Analysis and Critical
Control Point (HACCP).
As a result of such assistance, production volume
increased by more than 15% and rejects were
reduced from 15% to 5%. Correspondingly, gross
sale increased by 15% and shelf life of the ube-based
delicacies increased from one to three months and
those of the peanut-based products, from three to six
months. Outlets have likewise increased, from the
pasalubong centers to the malls and grocery stores.
Capital is still a major problem and so are workers
who prefer to migrate to Manila for better opportunities.
At this time when sales have been adversely
affected by the economy, the couple eagerly awaits
2015.
2015 is the year when they will finally own GIJ Foods.
“Maamo na jud ni sa 2015.”(We will be the sole owner
in 2015.) Perhaps, the first letter in Irvin’s name was
providential, after all.
GIJ Foods
213 Lindaville Subdivision-Phase 1, Tiptip,
Tagbilaran City, Bohol
Mr. Irvin Ingking
Proprietor
Tel No: (63)(38) 412 5527
Email: gijproducts@yahoo.com