DOST launches forest products innovation center in Isabela

The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) has launched a Forest Products Innovation and Training Center (FPITC) in partnership with Isabela State University (ISU)-Cabagan Campus to strengthen research, product development and skills training for the forest products sector in Isabela and the wider Cagayan Valley region.

Established through the DOST-Forest Products Research and Development Institute (FPRDI), the center provides access to modern fabrication and processing technologies, including computer numerical control (CNC) machines, laser engravers, 3D printers and kiln dryers.

“This center will be used for the research, development, and product innovation of wood and non-wood forest products that are present here in the region,” DOST-FPRDI Director Rico Cabangon said.

The center is expected to support students, researchers, micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), cooperatives and other businesses developing products from locally available forest resources such as bamboo and rattan.

Cabangon said rattan and bamboo are abundant in Cagayan Valley and could be further developed into higher-value products, including furniture and other wood-based goods.

“We can use these facilities for the students for research, and of course, the MSMEs in the region, or in Luzon, so that they can make use of these modern products to produce different innovative products that can come from the region,” he said.

The FPITC is strategically located at ISU-Cabagan, which has around 500 forestry students, one of the largest forestry student populations in the country. It also takes advantage of Isabela’s extensive forestland and forest cover, which provide raw materials for forest-based enterprises.

The center builds on DOST’s existing forest products initiatives in Region 2, including the Bamboo Textile Fiber Innovation Hub and the Regional Yarn Production and Innovation Center at ISU.

A bamboo treatment facility was also established in Quezon, Isabela, in 2025 to improve bamboo for construction applications. In Cagayan, DOST has likewise facilitated the technology transfer of charcoal briquette production using agricultural and forest residues.

“The future of the forest-products sector cannot simply be about raw materials. It must increasingly be about knowledge, technology, design, resource efficiency, value addition, and markets,” DOST Secretary Renato U. Solidum Jr. said.

Solidum urged ISU and DOST-FPRDI to make the FPITC an active and open platform for collaboration with government agencies, including the Department of Environment and Natural Resources and Department of Trade and Industry, as well as local governments, cooperatives and private enterprises.

The FPITC in Isabela is one of three such centers being established nationwide. The other two will be located at Visayas State University and Central Mindanao State University. —GMA News