A study by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) show that what used to be 500,000 hectares of mangrove forest spread across the country have slowly wilted down to just about 100,000 due to continuous land development and coastal reclamation. Given this alarming statistics, companies under businessman Manuel V. Pangilinan have found a new cause to champion. Through its award-winning corporate social responsibility flagship project "Shore It Up," the MVP Group of companies is now focusing on protecting Philippine mangroves after six years of coastal clean-up activities.

Loyola, J. (2015, July 6). MVP firms champion mangroves protection. Manila Bulletin, p. C4.