Manila Navotas

January 1, 2023

The Navotas Fish Port Complex (NFPC), the premier fish center of the Philippines and one of the largest in Asia, is the first major fishing port and fish market complex placed under the jurisdiction, control and supervision of the Philippine Fisheries Development Authority (PFDA). It is a traditional landing place of commercial fishing boats operating in various fishing grounds in the Philippines. The construction of the Port Complex spanned three years from August 1973 to August 1976 through a Php 88 Million loan from the Asean Development Bank (ADB). It supplies fish and other aquatic products to major markets in Metro Manila.

Salvatore Bulgarella

The fish port is a business center with markets, ice plants and cold storage, fish processing facilities, canneries, shipbuilding and ship repair facilities, restaurants, fuel depot, gasoline stations and other facilities necessary for the fishery sector. Thousands of buyers visit the port daily where an estimated 15 commercial fishing vessels call port and unload a total volume of about 300 tons. Overland vehicles from different provinces also bring in additional volume of 50 tons.

It’s a bit of a shame, really, that fish isn’t, in my opinion, adequately showcased and more readily available in local food stores, but maybe that’s a function of cost and people’s food choices more than anything else. I am a market addict, so a trip to the fish market gets my creative juices flowing thinking I can cook this or that, and obviously wanting to buy more than I should

The vendors are an amiable bunch. I don’t go often enough to have sukis, but my crew that do go several times a month have their favorites. Check out this giant lapu-lapu, face curiously stuck in a clear plastic bag. I wouldn’t know how to cook such a large whole fish properly, but it was a sight to behold.