The Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) has granted the first eel grow-out loan to Cacayan Aqua Ventures Inc. (CAVI), a start-up corporation currently in the process of expanding its eel farming and grow-out operations in Laguna. The loan agreement signed by DBP with CAVI is a milestone development in the pioneering local eel industry which started in the 1960s, fizzled out in the 1970s, but has enjoyed a recent resurgence in an industry estimated to reach more than P290.24-million annually. This potential growth has been stimulated by increasing foreign demand from such countries as Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and China, a vibrant local MSME sector, and the country’s competitive advantages as a natural eel highway and tropical spot that allows for year-round growing.

DBP spearheads lending to 'sunshine' eel industry. (2016, May 7). Manila Bulletin, p. B-2.