A fish port in the coastal town of Sual in the northern Philippines' Pangasinan province has resumed operations following a major infrastructure upgrade programme.
The modernised Sual Fish Port Complex now features improved storage and processing areas, a multi-purpose pier, a commercial building, and access roads.
The Pangasinan Provincial Government said that the upgraded facility will help improve and preserve seafood quality and increase the value of fisheries products.
Philippine Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said in an interview that the rehabilitated facility has been designed to ensure compliance with international standards, allowing fisheries products processed in Sual to be exported.
Mr Laurel added that the facility's products will be certified for markets in the EU, the Middle East and the United States, though the facility itself is capable of delivering products suitable for export to, "any part of of the world."
The upgraded port will primarily serve the Pangasinan municipalities of Sual, Anda, Bolinao and Infanta, which account for a significant share of the province's milkfish (C. Chanos) production, the provincial government said.
Pangasinan is the Philippines' leading supplier of milkfish, accounting for nearly 39 per cent of the country's total production, according to data published by the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center.