1. To pursue an integrated agricultural, industrial and economic research and development of the coconut industry;
2. To conduct research and development projects on coconut encompassing all agricultural, industrial, and economic phases, such as but not limited to production, farm management, industrial processing and marketing, with a view of attaining nutritive economic advantages and benefits for the Filipino coconut farmers and the Philippines in particular and the people of Asia and other coconut growing areas in general;
3. To acquire, develop and propagate improved plant materials and technology;
4. To train promising scientists, students and coconut farmers and their children on various disciplines related to coconut production, utilization, and marketing;
5. To design and implement, in coordination with universities both here and abroad scholarships and fellowship programs on academic fields that will enhance coconut development;
6. To organize and hold annual conferences, forums and seminars whether local, regional or international, for the purpose of discussing current developments and problems on the agricultural, industrial and marketing aspects of the industry;
7. To establish, maintain and operate a coconut research center, wherein shall be consolidated all researches by other institutions, as well as to establish, maintain and operate an information center and library which will provide, among others, for interested scientists and scholars everywhere a collection of the world’s literature on coconut;
8. To design and implement a farm extension program to effectively transfer modern farm technology to coconut farmers;
9. To publish and disseminate research findings and make appropriate recommendations to interested parties.

It was on October 31, 1974, when coconut communities saw the birth of an institution named Philippine Coconut Research & Development Foundation or PCRDF. The Foundation was organized on that date by a team of twelve innovative individuals representing the various sectors of the Philippine coconut industry. Their goal was to make coconut research and development (R&D) an institution in the Philippines, one that would be free from bureaucratic and vested interests, yet attuned to the wide range of needs of the various sectors of the coconut industry.

As an autonomous, non-stock, and non-profit science foundation, PCRDF was organized to play the significant role of pursuing and promoting research and development in response to the development requirements of the coconut communities in the country. Since its establishment in 1974, the foundation has steadily expanded its R&D activities:

1. a coconut research center named PCRDF Central Coconut Laboratory was established in 1996
2. invested in establishing various satellite centers popularly known as COCOLABs and showcase farms in the country
3. ties forged with other research institutions here and abroad

Through the years, PCRDF has adopted the strategy of helping strengthen critical areas in the R&D effort in coconut, and filling gaps in the scientific work. Until now, PCRDF continues to provide funding support for both basic and applied researches on the areas of coconut production and utilization, and socio-economic research focused on the people involved in coconut as well as on policies that affect the industry’s many sectors. Currently, the Foundation conducts R&D projects on coconut with a view in mind of attaining nutritive and economic advantages and benefits for the coconut farmers.

Milestones

• 1975. PCRDF received the DOST Accreditation on as a recognized foundation dedicated to scientific pursuits under Section 24 of RA 2067 as amended by RA 3589.
• 1978. Four years after its inception, PCRDF embarked on one of its biggest projects ever, the development of tissue culture technique for cloning coconuts.
• 1978. PCRDF launched its first makapuno mass propagation project.
• July 11, 1983. PCRDF was recognized with the Outstanding Institution Award given by NRCP and NSTA for adopting the makapuno embryo culture technique under the NRCP auspices by the late Dr. Emerita V. de Guzman of UPLB for mass propagation, thereby bringing this nutritious and delicious fruit within the reach of many people.
• July 1983. PCRDF received the Outstanding Project Undertaken by PCRDF Award (1972-1982) granted by the NSTA for Mass Propagation of Makapuno Nut (National Science Development Research).
• June 11, 1993. PCRDF received recognition award for the support and cooperation the Foundation has provided in making possible the transfer of funds to PCA for the conduct of the Seminar-Workshop on Village, Small and Medium Scale Processing of Fresh Coconut which was spearheaded and funded by the Koninklijk Instituut Voor de Tropen (KIT).
• December 1987. Coco Manila Food Corp was established as a joint venture between PCRDF and Agro-Gold Food Corp for the business of processing coconut milk for local and foreign markets.
• 1988-1991. PCRDF joined hands with the University of the Philippines in Diliman in proving the anti-cancer potential of coconut oil. This study contributed to further explore the diverse uses of coconut.
• August 1989. The Foundation forged a tie-up with the New England Deaconess Hospital, an affiliate of the Harvard Medical School, to investigate the use of coconut oil in human nutrition and diet and its effects on the cholesterol level.
• 1991. PCRDF spearheaded the use of coconut methyl ester (CME) as 100% substitute for diesel fuel. After a 100,000 km run in AUV, CME proved to be an environment and engine-friendly diesel substitute.
• 1993. Launching of the nationwide (?) coconut rehabilitation project through agro-forestation and intercropping.
• June 1996. Official launching/inauguration of the first coconut laboratory in the Philippines, The PCRDF Central Coconut Laboratory.
• 1999. Dr. Jon J. Kabara, a noted pharmacologist in the US and a member of the American Oil Chemists Society, joined the PCRDF research group as a consultant.
• July 7, 1998. PCRDF signs pact with the United Laboratories Inc. (UNILAB) on the production of new MCM drug to battle infectious diseases such HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis.

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Milestones

• 1999. PCRDF formally launched the world’s first testing on coconut oil’s monolaurin as a potential cure for HIV/AIDS positive patients.
• October 4, 1999. Awarded, Outstanding Research Organization by the Philippine Coconut Authority for being in the forefront of the publication and dissemination of research outputs in coconut agriculture, processing, quality improvement and control, and marketing of coconut products, an accomplishment that benefited the coconut industry and the general public as well.
• 2000. PCRDF launched its field planting establishment of embryo cultured makapuno seedlings located at Pilar, Sorsogon, the biggest makapuno plantation in the Philippines to date.
• December 2001. Former Department of Science and Technology Secretary William G. Padolina joined the brains behind the Foundation’s operations as a new member of the PCRDF Board of Trustees.

Structural Organization

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