The Department of Trade and Industry Regional Office VIII (DTIRO-8) conducted a site visit to Biliran Province State University’s (BiPSU) Shared Services Facility (SSF) on July 7, headed by RD Celerina T. Bato, DTIRO-8 Regional Director, along with the Provincial Directors in the region.

The objective of the site visit was to check the different equipment under the SSF project placed at the Food Research and Development Research (FRDC) of BiPSU. Moreover, it also aimed to monitor the various activities conducted by FRDC in promoting the SSF to the micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in the province.

On their visit, the directors learned about the facility's services to the stakeholders and the public, as discussed by Dr. Marianne Agnes T. Mendoza, BiPSU Vice President for Research, Innovation, and Extension Services.

They also learned that an existing laboratory could support the MSMEs, especially the food processors, the Food Microbiology Laboratory (FML), a grant from the National Research Council of the Philippines (NRCP).

In an interview with PD Araceli D. Larraga, DTI Leyte Provincial Director, he commended BIPSU for its accomplishments in serving the MSMEs.

“Indeed, it was a great accomplishment for BiPSU to support our MSMEs, especially our food processors,“ PD Araceli D. Larraga said.

“The visit was satisfactory, but it needs more additional network and coordination with other agencies to bring in other equipment so that the whole package of the intervention could be fully given to the MSME’s,” she added.