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Construction of the Clark National Food Hub is set to start soon following the signing of agreements between the Department of Agriculture and Food Terminal Inc. for funding, development, and operations, as well as between FTI and Clark International Airport Corp. for the lease of the facility’s site
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The government has so far committed P4 billion to the project
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DA chief Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. directed FTI president Joseph Lo and DA undersecretary Arrey Perez to keep the project on an accelerated timetable
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The hub will integrate food aggregation, storage, processing, distribution, and marketing, including cold storage, processing facilities, food safety labs, export facilities, and wholesale and retail areas
Construction of the Clark National Food Hub – which has been marked for accelerated development – is set to start soon following the signing of agreements between the Department of Agriculture (DA) and Food Terminal Inc. (FTI) for funding, development, and operations, as well as between FTI and Clark International Airport Corp. for the lease of the facility’s site.
Agriculture secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. has instructed FTI president Joseph Lo and Agriculture undersecretary Arrey Perez to ensure the project becomes partially operational by the end of 2027, according to a DA statement.
With about P4 billion now committed for the project, the DA said the groundwork is set for the construction phase.
The project will be located within an approximately 40-hectare area at the Clark Aviation Capital in Pampanga, with options for future expansion.
READ: FTI, CIAC ink P3.6B deal for mega food hub in Clark
Tiu Laurel referenced Perez’s prior work on New Clark City, where he helped develop the road network and key buildings ahead of schedule, to support maintaining the food hub’s fast-tracked timeline.
The hub will bring together food aggregation, storage, processing, distribution, and marketing in one integrated system. Planned facilities include food and cold storage, processing areas, food safety laboratories, export processing, and wholesale and retail spaces.
Tiu Laurel said the project aims to close a critical gap between farm production and markets, where inefficient logistics erode farmers’ earnings, discourage private investment, and increase consumer costs.
“We cannot build a modern agriculture sector if our farmers can produce more but cannot get their products to markets efficiently and profitably,” Tiu Laurel said. “Today, we give this project the foundation to move from paper to pavement.”
The agriculture chief said the Mega Food Hub is central to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s vision of a more modern and food-secure Philippine agriculture sector.
“And this is more than just a campaign promise. For President Marcos, it is a covenant with the Filipino people, especially those who feed the nation every day,” he said.
Food hub models
Lo said preparations have been underway since last year, including recruiting a dedicated team focused exclusively on designing the facility’s operations.
The team has studied food hub models and logistics practices abroad, traveling to Thailand, France, Spain, the Netherlands, and Japan to examine best practices that could be adapted to the Philippine setting.
FTI will be responsible for operating, managing, and maintaining the facility to ensure it is efficient and sustainable. The DA will supervise the project implementation and monitor construction activities.
Once fully scaled up, the hub is expected to support about 2,500 jobs and create opportunities across the agriculture and fisheries value chains.
Perez said the hub is ultimately about raising incomes at the farm level.
“Our dream here is simple: to put more money in the pockets of our farmers and fisherfolk. At the Clark Hub, they will have a direct way to sell their harvest to markets and buyers, with less layers in between. This is not just about buildings and warehouses — it is about building a system that makes life easier and more profitable for those who feed our nation,” Perez said.
