The candy that borrowed the name
A generation of Filipinos grew up with a local candy sold as Turkish delight, and the searches for what it is called now, and where it went, are searches for a memory. It was not lokum; it borrowed the name, as the British chocolate bar did elsewhere. We do not name the brand. What matters for an importer is that the words Turkish delight already mean something in the Philippines, and that the real thing has room next to the memory. A shop that puts the box next to the memory sells to two customers at once: the one who remembers and the one who has tasted the original abroad.
The real lokum
Starch-set cubes dusted with sugar, rose, lemon and pomegranate, and the Gaziantep finger roll filled with whole pistachio and coated in coconut or kadayif, cut to order; chocolate covered pieces for the confectionery case. Online shops now sell the box by the piece to the shoppers who searched; an importer sells it by the pallet to the pasalubong shops, the delicatessens and the gift companies. The Turkish delight page lists the groups; the Turkish delight explained article covers the recipe.
Pasalubong and the box
The gift brought home from a trip is the box’s natural place: a printed assortment, neither chocolate nor pastillas, that keeps for months on a warm shelf without a fridge. Pasalubong shops and the airport buy it by the carton, and a shop group can have the box printed under its own name on selected lines. The pistachio roll is the piece the traveller remembers, because it names the city on the box. The Philippine private label page lists the formats.
The registration and the label
Like every imported food, the box is registered by the importer before it is sold, with the producer’s free sale certificate, certificate of analysis and authorisation letter named per line in the offer. The label is in English with the importer’s registration; the data sheet states the recipe per product. The registration article goes through it.
How it travels
Plain and dusted lokum travels dry all year to Manila or Cebu, and stores dry, which is why it suits a warm shelf better than chocolate does. Chocolate covered pieces follow the chocolate rule: a reefer year round. Each line has its own pallet, so the Turkish delight box shares the container with dragées for giveaways and the Dubai style bar. The Philippines page lists what stays the same on every offer.
How to start
Start with the turkish delight page: pick the lines, say how many and name the port. The written offer follows within two working days and states what each line weighs by the carton and what the minimum is.
Tasting first is normal — samples are free from running production, you cover the courier. The philippines: what stays the same on every offer page lists what stays the same on every offer, and the private label for philippine brands page covers putting your own name on the pack.
Is the Turkish delight sold in the Philippines the real thing?
The local candy that borrowed the name is a different product; the box from Gaziantep is starch-set lokum.
Does Turkish delight need a fridge?
No. Plain lokum stores dry at a moderate temperature; chocolate covered pieces are stored cold.
Can a pasalubong shop brand the box?
On selected lines, as one of our core services, with the label content and the registration documents prepared before printing.
