From the garden, to garlands and then to gastronomy. Who would have thought that the sweet-smelling sampaguita can grow and go this far?
It was educator Rosa Baul of the Floridablanca National Agricultural School (FNAS) in Floridablanca town who saw the potential of the Sampaguita to produce food by-products.
During the April edition of Pampanga Press Club’s media forum News@Hues at the Park Inn by Raddison Clark on April 16, Baul said the school-based enterprise was primarily aimed at helping sampaguita growers in the towns of Floridablanca, Lubao and Guagua.
As a result, they have been able to produce food by-products including sampaguita cookies, Jasmine tisane tea, and Sampaguita-infused lemon and bignay (Antidesma bunius) juices, as well as dragon fruit jam.
According to Baul, the project is in coordination with the Department of Science and Technology, which is overseeing the products’ stardardization process, while awaiting approval from the Food and Drug Administration.
Once approved, the products can then be sold commercially.
