aggie trends january 2011

16
Vol. XXVI No. 1 A monthly publication of the Department of Agriculture January 2011 Mindanao L Mindanao L Mindanao L Mindanao L Mindanao LGUs pr GUs pr GUs pr GUs pr GUs propose P6.4-B pr opose P6.4-B pr opose P6.4-B pr opose P6.4-B pr opose P6.4-B projects ojects ojects ojects ojects DA allots P12.8B for irrigation (Pls turn to p2) Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala (left) shares with World Bank country director Bert Hofman (2nd from right) and Mark Woodward (right), WB sustainable development leader, the success stories of two lady farmers who now live comfortably as their in- comes have increased considerably by selling their produce directly at the Sentrong Pamilihan ng Produktong Agrikultural sa Quezon (SPPAQ) in Sariaya, one of the country’s major trading posts. Provincial and municipal gov- ernments in Mindanao have pro- posed a total of P6.38-billion worth of rural infrastructure projects under the second phase of the World Bank funded- Mindanao Rural Development Program (MRDP2), implemented by the Department of Agriculture. “The total project proposals have exceeded our original tar- get of P4.3B by 50%,” said Agri- culture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala in his report to President Benigno S. Aquino III. Such favorable development, Secretary Alcala added, was a result of the DA’s strategy to help Mindanao LGUs raise the required counterpart of 50% for every in- frastructure project . Participating or ‘enrolled’ mu- nicipalities need only to raise 10% of project cost as equity, while the DA will shoulder 40%. The MRDP will provide one-half from the WB loan. “In a way, this also shows the trust and confidence of Mindanao local executives on His Excellency’s administration, as participation in MRDP projects from 2007 to 2010 was only 15%,” noted Sec. Alcala in his report to President Aquino. Of the total P6.38-B infrastruc- ture projects, P1.22B are either completed, ongoing and under procurement; P2.1B-worth are under review; and P3.04 B are be- ing packaged for submission by LGU proponents. 100 LGU Chiefs Attend Forum Meanwhile, more than 100 Mindanao LGU executives at- tended the MRDP consultation, January 27, in Cagayan de Oro City. The one-day event was unprec- edented, as it gathered nine gov- ernors, seven congressmen and more than 80 city and municipal mayors, and vice mayors, dis- cussing ways and mutual coop- eration to speed up the imple- mentation of various MRDP infra- structure and livelihood projects. The MRDP2 covers Mindanao’s PCIC pays P245M in crop claims Senator Francis Pangilinan (right), chair of the Senate agriculture committee and Congressional Oversight Committee on Agricultural and Fisheries Modernization (COCAFM), suggests some topics to be discussed at the COCAFM organizational meeting, Jan. 30, 2011, at the DA-BSWM convention hall, With him are (from left) Agricul- ture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala, COCAFM co-chair Rep. Mark Llandro Mendoza, and COCAFM members Rep. Jesus Sacdalan and Rep. Imelda Quibranza Dimaporo. (Pls read story on page 3.) (Pls turn to p15) The National Irrigation Admin- istration (NIA) is getting the lion’s share of the 2011 budget of the Department of Agriculture, at P12.79 billion, representing roughly 37% of the DA’s total budget for the year. “As irrigation is directly propor- tional to rice production, we should provide it the needed funds so we can attain our rice self-sufficiency target by 2013,” said Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala. Of the total NIA budget, about 61% or P7.75B is allotted for 43 locally-funded projects (LFPs), while the rest is for six foreign- assisted projects (FAPs), added NIA administrator Antonio Nangel. Altogether, Sec. Alcala said the projects will contribute to increas- ing rice production this year and in succeeding years, as addi- tional areas will be irrigated, to- talling some 156,000 hectares. At an average yield of five tons of palay per hectare per cropping, and two croppings a year, such additional hectarage will contrib- ute at least 1.56 million tons of palay annually, Nangel said. When completed, the local and foreign-funded irrigation projects will irrigate a total of 27,131 hect- The Department of Agriculture through the Philippine Crop Insur- ance Corp. (PCIC) has paid a to- tal of P245.5 million to 28,419 farmers, enabling them to recover and start anew, from crop dam- ages due to El Niño in the first semester and typhoon ‘Juan’ in the latter half of 2010. In a report to Agriculture Sec- retary Proceso J. Alcala, PCIC president Jovy Bernabe said the amount was the biggest indem- nification the agency has paid in the last 30 years. Despite this record, Sec. Alcala has instructed the PCIC to further reduce the processing time, ranging from 9 to 19 days, to seven to 10 working days. He issued the order during a meeting of the regional manage- ment committee (RMC) in CARAGA, middle of January. In all, the PCIC in 2010 insured P5.95-B worth of agricultural in- vestments, 13% more than in 2009, at P5.2B. (Pls turn to p15)

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Vol. XXVI No. 1A monthly publication of the Department of Agriculture

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: Aggie Trends January 2011

Vol. XXVI No. 1 A monthly publication of the Department of Agriculture January 2011

Mindanao LMindanao LMindanao LMindanao LMindanao LGUs prGUs prGUs prGUs prGUs propose P6.4-B propose P6.4-B propose P6.4-B propose P6.4-B propose P6.4-B projectsojectsojectsojectsojects

DA allots P12.8B for irrigation

(Pls turn to p2)

Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala (left) shares with WorldBank country director Bert Hofman (2nd from right) and MarkWoodward (right), WB sustainable development leader, the successstories of two lady farmers who now live comfortably as their in-comes have increased considerably by selling their produce directlyat the Sentrong Pamilihan ng Produktong Agrikultural sa Quezon(SPPAQ) in Sariaya, one of the country’s major trading posts.

Provincial and municipal gov-ernments in Mindanao have pro-posed a total of P6.38-billionworth of rural infrastructureprojects under the second phaseof the World Bank funded-Mindanao Rural DevelopmentProgram (MRDP2), implementedby the Department of Agriculture.

“The total project proposalshave exceeded our original tar-get of P4.3B by 50%,” said Agri-culture Secretary Proceso J.Alcala in his report to PresidentBenigno S. Aquino III.

Such favorable development,Secretary Alcala added, was aresult of the DA’s strategy to helpMindanao LGUs raise the requiredcounterpart of 50% for every in-frastructure project .

Participating or ‘enrolled’ mu-nicipalities need only to raise10% of project cost as equity,while the DA will shoulder 40%.The MRDP will provide one-halffrom the WB loan.

“In a way, this also shows thetrust and confidence of Mindanaolocal executives on HisExcellency’s administration, asparticipation in MRDP projectsfrom 2007 to 2010 was only15%,” noted Sec. Alcala in hisreport to President Aquino.

Of the total P6.38-B infrastruc-ture projects, P1.22B are eithercompleted, ongoing and underprocurement; P2.1B-worth areunder review; and P3.04 B are be-ing packaged for submission byLGU proponents.

100 LGU Chiefs Attend ForumMeanwhile, more than 100

Mindanao LGU executives at-tended the MRDP consultation,January 27, in Cagayan de OroCity.

The one-day event was unprec-edented, as it gathered nine gov-ernors, seven congressmen andmore than 80 city and municipalmayors, and vice mayors, dis-cussing ways and mutual coop-eration to speed up the imple-mentation of various MRDP infra-structure and livelihood projects.

The MRDP2 covers Mindanao’s

PCIC pays P245M

in crop claims

Senator Francis Pangilinan (right), chair of the Senate agriculturecommittee and Congressional Oversight Committee on Agriculturaland Fisheries Modernization (COCAFM), suggests some topics tobe discussed at the COCAFM organizational meeting, Jan. 30, 2011,at the DA-BSWM convention hall, With him are (from left) Agricul-ture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala, COCAFM co-chair Rep. MarkLlandro Mendoza, and COCAFM members Rep. Jesus Sacdalanand Rep. Imelda Quibranza Dimaporo. (Pls read story on page 3.)

(Pls turn to p15)

The National Irrigation Admin-istration (NIA) is getting the lion’sshare of the 2011 budget of theDepartment of Agriculture, atP12.79 bil l ion, representingroughly 37% of the DA’s total

budget for the year.“As irrigation is directly propor-

tional to rice production, weshould provide it the neededfunds so we can attain our riceself-sufficiency target by 2013,”said Agriculture SecretaryProceso J. Alcala.

Of the total NIA budget, about61% or P7.75B is allotted for 43locally-funded projects (LFPs),while the rest is for six foreign-assisted projects (FAPs), addedNIA administrator Antonio Nangel.

Altogether, Sec. Alcala said theprojects will contribute to increas-ing rice production this year andin succeeding years, as addi-tional areas will be irrigated, to-talling some 156,000 hectares.

At an average yield of five tonsof palay per hectare per cropping,and two croppings a year, suchadditional hectarage will contrib-ute at least 1.56 million tons ofpalay annually, Nangel said.

When completed, the local andforeign-funded irrigation projectswill irrigate a total of 27,131 hect-

The Department of Agriculturethrough the Philippine Crop Insur-ance Corp. (PCIC) has paid a to-tal of P245.5 million to 28,419farmers, enabling them to recoverand start anew, from crop dam-ages due to El Niño in the firstsemester and typhoon ‘Juan’ inthe latter half of 2010.

In a report to Agriculture Sec-retary Proceso J. Alcala, PCICpresident Jovy Bernabe said theamount was the biggest indem-nification the agency has paid inthe last 30 years.

Despite this record, Sec.Alcala has instructed the PCICto further reduce the processingtime, ranging from 9 to 19 days,to seven to 10 working days.

He issued the order during ameeting of the regional manage-ment committee (RMC) inCARAGA, middle of January.

In all, the PCIC in 2010 insuredP5.95-B worth of agricultural in-vestments, 13% more than in2009, at P5.2B.

(Pls turn to p15)

Page 2: Aggie Trends January 2011

2

Writers: Adora D. Rodriguez, Jo Anne Grace B. Pera, Arlhene S. Carro,

Bethzaida Bustamante, Mc. Bien Saint Garcia, Jay Ilagan, Catherine Nanta

Contributors: DA-RFU Info Officers, Public Info Officers and Staff of DA

Bureaus, Attached Agencies & Corporations, Foreign-Assisted Projects

is published monthly by the Department of Agriculture InformationService, Elliptical Road, Diliman, Quezon City. Tel. nos. 9288762 loc 2148,2150, 2155, 2156 or 2184; 9204080 or tel/fax 9280588. This issue is availablein PDF file. For copies, please send requests via email: [email protected].

Editor-In-Chief : Noel O. Reyes

Associate Editors: Karenina Salazar & Cheryl C. Suarez

Photographers: Jose Lucas, Alan Jay Jacalan, & Kathrino Resurreccion

Lay-out Artist: Bethzaida Bustamante

Printing & Circulation: Teresita Abejar & PCES Staff

Editorial

Game na!Mula sa dating pagbibigay

ng subsidyo at pinansyal natulong sa mga magsasaka,mas inuuna na angpagsasaayos ngimprastraktura para masmatagal ang benepisyo atmas marami angmakinabang.

Ito ang isa sa mgamalaking pagbabago sadireksyon ng Department ofAgriculture.

Kasabay nito ay angpatuloy na pagsuporta samga magsasaka at lokal naindustriya, kahit pa sabihinna mas murang bumili ngbigas sa ibang bansa.

Ganito ang layon ni Sec.Proceso ‘Procy’ J. Alcala sapamunuan ng DA, alinsunodsa balangkas o ‘framework’ng Agri-Pinoy.

Mula ngayon, ani Sec‘Procy,’ ang anumangprograma ng DA ay dapattutugon sa apat na prinsipyong Agri-Pinoy.

Ang mga ito ay:1) Food security and self-

sufficiency;2) Sustainable agriculture

and fishery;3) Natural resource

management;4) Local development.

Maliban sa mgaprinsipyong ito, ang bawatprograma ng DA aykailangang tumugon samga sumusunod na ‘checklist:’

1) Broad-based o maramiang nakikilahok atmakikinabang;

2) May pagtutulungan samga samahan ngmagsasaka, lokal napamahalaan, at iba pangahensya ng gobyerno;

3)Tumutugon sa mgapangangailang binhi,kagamitan, teknolohiya atsistema sa produksyon,postharvest, processing atmarketing o tinatawag na‘farm-to-table;’

4) Sustainable farmingsystems

5) Resilient o tumutugonsa mga pagbabago ng

panahon at sa pandaigdigangkalakalan.

Ilan lamang ito sa mgadirektiba ni Sec ‘Procy’ samga kasapi ng DAmanagement committee oManCom nitong unang linggong Enero.

Inilatag niya ang ilan samga guideline upang masmaiging maipatupad angmga programa at adhikain ngDA, lalung-lalo na ang mgapamamaraan upang makamitang kasapatan sa bigas sataong 2013.

Binigyan niya rin ng diin sabawat pinuno ng DA nadapat nilang ipaalam sa mgalokal na pinuno--Governor,Congressman, Mayor atmaging Kapitan ngBarangay--ang anumangprograma o proyekto naipapatupad ng DA sakanayunan.

Sa pakikipag-ugnayan sakanila, makasisiguro namagkakaroon ng isangkaisipan, layunin at galawang pagpapatupad nganumang programa, masmaluwat at matagumpay namaisasagawa ang anumangadhikain at proyekto.

Gayundi din dapat angantas ng pakikipag-tulunganat ugnayan sa mga samahanng magsasaka atmangingisda, NGOs atpribadong sektor.

Totoo nga na napakalaking hamon na hinaharap ngbuong pamunuan atkawanihan ng DA, lalung-lalona ni Sec Procy.

Mabigat ang nakaatang naresponsibilidad at mataasang expectation sa kanya ngtaong bayan.

Halimbawa, ngayon palamang ay marami na angnagsasabing hindi natinmakakamit ang kasapatansa bigas sa 2013.

Kaya naman, buong pusonating ibigay ang atingpakikiisa at anumang tulongkay Sec Procy at sa buongKagawaran.

Game na!

Mindanao LGUs ... (from p1)

26 provinces and 225 municipali-ties. It commenced in 2007 andends in 2012.

To date, the MRDP has ap-proved and currently implementsvarious projects, totalling 15% ofprogram loan. This level, Secre-tary Alcala said should be in-creased to 60% by March 31,2011.

One major concern proposedduring the consultation was theconcreting of critical portions ofFMRs, alloting up to 75% of totalproject cost, and the remaining25% for maintenance.

Hence, the cost of ‘pipelined’FMRs will be revised accordingly,said MRDP director LealynRamos.

For his part, MRDP deputy pro-gram director Arnel de Mesa saida workshop involving provincial,city and municipal engineers, andMRDP project coordinators will

Sec. Alcala (top, left) keynotes the MRDP consultation in Cagayande Oro, attended by more than 100 Mindanao governors, congress-men, mayors and vice mayors (bottom).

be held on February 7 to 11,2011, in Davao City. The groupwill revise and evaluate existingFMR and other infrastructureprojects, finalize project propos-als and submit these for approval,on or before March 31, 2011.

Sec. Alcala, who is a civil en-gineer by profession, said he willfrom hereon act as the MRDP’s‘playing coach’ and personallyoversee the implementation ofvarious projects. He committedto visit Mindanao at least onceevery two or three weeks to moni-tor MRDP projects.

Among the governors presentwere: Oscar Moreno (MisamisOriental), Rodolfo del Rosario(Davao del Norte), Adolf EdwardPlaza (Agusan del Sur), EsmaelMangudadatu (Maguindanao),Ronaldo Yebes (Zamboanga delNorte), Antonio Ceril les(Zamboanga del Sur), CorazonMalayanon (Davao Oriental),

(Pls turn to p15)

Page 3: Aggie Trends January 2011

January 2011 3

DDDDDA cA cA cA cA chiefhiefhiefhiefhief issues mar issues mar issues mar issues mar issues marccccching orhing orhing orhing orhing orderderderderdersssss

Floods damageP463-M crops;DA provides seeds,other farm inputs

Provide self-less service.Stay ‘clean’ and govern well to

cleanse the DA’s image.Improve the lives of small farm-

ers, fishers, and provide a betterfuture for their children.

These are some of the initialmarching orders of AgricultureSecretary Proceso J. Alcala toall DA regional, bureau and ser-vice directors, and heads of at-tached agencies and corpora-tions, and foreign-assistedprojects, during the DA family’sfirst national ‘command confer-ence’ or management committee(ManCom) executive meeting,January 6, 2011, at the DA-Bu-reau of Soils and Water Manage-ment (BSWM) convention hall.

He said the DA family officialsand staff have a lot to do in thearea of good governance, and pro-vision of quick and efficient ser-vice to clienteles, and qualityfarm inputs, equipment and infra-structure to farmers’ and fishers’groups and local governments.

During the meeting, he alsopresented the “Agri-Pinoy” stra-tegic framework that will set thedirection of all exisitng and newDA programs.

He said Agri-Pinoy has fourguiding principles, namely: foodsecurity and self-sufficiency; sus-tainable agriculture and fishery;natural resource management;and local development.

These guiding principles shouldserve as the barometer or ‘mea-suring stick’ of current and andnew DA initiatives and programs.

He urged concerned nationalcoordinators of major commod-ity programs (rice, corn, highvalue crops, fishery and live-stock) to finalize their respectivecommodity roadmap, taking intoaccount the four guiding prin-ciples of Agri-Pinoy.

He told all DA regional execu-tive directors (REDs) and otherDA family officials to regularly in-form their respective provincial,city and municipal executives ofany DA project or activity--togather their support and coopera-tion, more particularly so theycould provide needed support andcounterpart funds to implementmore farm and fishery projects aspossible.

He asked the DA-REDs to leadthe regular meetings of the Re-gional ManCom (RMC), com

posed of respective head of DAfamily agencies in the region--in-cluding the regional or districtmanager of the Land Bank of thePhilippines (as the DA Secretaryserves as a member of the LBPBoard of Directors)--to discussmajor agricultural and fishery con-cerns and issues.

One such critical RMC meet-ing, Sec. Alcala said, should beheld weeks before the start of thecropping season to discuss theinterventions and assistance thatthe DA should provide farmers.

He asked the REDs to helpstrengthen the seed industry intheir respective area, particularlythe seed growers’ associations.He told them to conduct an in-ventory of seed banks or storagewarehouses, if any.

Under his watch, he said theDA should build at least one seedbank per province to ensure aready supply in times of calami-ties.

He said planting quality seedsis the ‘bedrock of agriculture,’ fol-lowed by irrigation and sustain-able farming technologies andpractices.

He rallied all DA officials to con-tribute their share in attainingAquino government’s rice self-suf-ficiency goal by 2013.

He asked the National Agricul-tural and Fisheries Council(NAFC) to coordinate with otheragencies so it could streamlineand refine its proposed AKBaylivelihood program intended tobenefit poor and marginal farm-ing and fishing communities.

Sec. Alcala (3rd from right) presides over the DA family’s first na-tional ManCom executive meeting, January 6, 2011, at the BSWMconvention hall. With him (from left) are USec. Antonio Fleta, NFAAdm. Angelito Banayo, USec. Joel Rudinas, STAG member Ed delaTorre, and USec. Bernadette Romulo-Puyat.

For its first organizationmeeting, the CongressionalOversight Committee on Agri-culture and Fisheries Modern-ization (COCAFM)--chaired bySenator Francisco Pangilinanand co-chaired by Rep. MarkLlandro Mendoza--discussedrespective updates on the threemajor laws that impact on thecountry’s agriculture and fish-ery sector.

The committee members,welcomed by Agriculture Sec-retary Proceso J. Alcala, werebriefed on the implementationof the Agriculture and Fisher-ies Modernization Act (AFMA)by DA Undersecretary (USec)Segfredo Serrano, followed byUSec Antonio Fleta on the Ag-ricultural Competitiveness En-hancement Fund (ACEF), andDir. Gilberto Layese of the Bu-reau of Agriculture and Fisher-ies Product Standards on Or-ganic Agriculture Act. Alsopresent was DA USecBernadette Romulo Puyat.

COCAFM tackles updateson AFMA, ACEF, Organic Act

The meeting commencedwith Sec. Alcala welcomingSenator Pangilinan, Rep.Mendoza, and other COCAFMmembers.

Thereafter, COCAFM OIC-ex-ecutive director JocelynBadiola gave an overview of thecommittee’s tasks, amongthem to oversee and monitorthe implementation of the Agri-culture and Fisheries Modern-ization Act (AFMA), and otheragri-related laws, as well asprovide legislative support tothe respective committee onagriculture at the Senate andHouse of Representatives.

Senator Pangilinan said thatunder his chairmanship theCOCAFM will conduct regularconsultations and dialogueswith farmers, fishers and otherindustry stakeholders to gathertheir pulse and feedback onhow government and the legis-lature can sustain the develop-ment, modernization and com-

(Pls turn to p15)

Continuous rains due to a lin-gering cold front early this monthflooded farmlands and fishpondsin several regions of the coun-try, exacting an estimated lossof P463-million worth of variouscrops, livestock and fish stocks.

Field reports submitted to theDepartment of Agriculture CentralAction Center (DACAC) showthat the floods submerged some47,480 hectares of crop lands ineight regions (4-B, 5, 6, 8, 9,10, 11, and 13), damaging a totalof 2,795 tons of rice, corn, andhigh value crops.

Minimal damage was reportedin the fisheries and and livestocksub-sectors, with damages atP2.9M and a little over P0.5M,respectively.

To enable affected farmers toreplant again, the DA has ex-tended assistance to seven re-gions (Bicol, Western Visayas,Eastern Visayas, ZamboangaPeninsula, Northern Mindanao,Davao, and CARAGA), wherefarmlands where flooded due tocontinuous rains early thismonth.

Sec. Alcala personally distrib-uted said assistance when he vis-ited St. Bernard, in SouthernLeyte, along with PresidentAquino, and in other provinces.

(Pls read related stories on pp10-11.)

(Pls turn to p15)

Page 4: Aggie Trends January 2011

4

SPJA urges hog raisersto link with corn farmers

More corn seen in 2011, at 7 M tons

To ensure regular supply ofcorn for feed, Agriculture Secre-tary Proceso Alcala is urging hograisers to link with corn farmersby forging contract-growing andmarketing agreements.

He assures them that the De-partment of Agriculture will pro-vide the needed technical supportto institutionalize and strengthensuch partnerships between hograisers and corn farmers.

Sec. Alcala made the commit-ment at the ‘Pig Summit,’ heldJanuary 26, 2011, in Cebu, at-tended by more than 100 hograisers from Central Visayas andother parts of the country to dis-cuss and thresh out industry prob-lems, in consultation with na-tional and local officials.

Senator Francis Pangilinan,chair of the Senate agriculturecommittee, keynoted the affair.

It was also attended by severalRepresentatives, among them:Llandro Mark Mendoza, LorenzoTañada III, Angelo Palmones,Roberto So and Nicanor Briones.

Sec. Alcala was joined by otherDA officials, namely: ass’t. sec.for livestock Davinio Catbagan;Dir. Jane Bacayo of the NationalMeat Inspection Service; Dir.Efren Nuestro of the Bureau ofAnimal Industry; Dir. ManuelJarmin of the Livestock Develop-ment Council; AdministratorGrace Cenas of the Nat’l. DairyAuthority; and DA-Region 7 Dir.Ricardo Oblena.

Sec. Alcala said the DA willconsider a program to providesmall hog raisers, as they com-prise 70% of the country’s hogindustry, with subsidized vac-cines, and other veterinary, tech-nical and logistics support.

He encouraged them along withother livestock and poultry rais-ers to seize the country’s com-parative advantage as the Philip-pines remains free from thedreaded foot and mouth disease(FMD) and avian flu.

He requested the hog raisers’group to identify their represen-tatives who will meet regularlywith the DA (to be led by A/SecCatbagan) to prioritize major in-dustry problems, come up withpossible solutions, and respec-tive timelines.

He instructed Asec Catbaganto coordinate with big commer-cial hog raisers and their respec-tive associations so they couldmake proper representations with

the Senate and Congress of thePhilippines to draft a proposedlegislation against technicalsmuggling of pork and chickenand other meat products in thecountry. They can also seek theopinion of the Department of Jus-tice on the matter.

He said the DA will considerrecommending that tariff rates beincreased for all types of meat(including offals, jowls and skins,etc.) but with particular consid-eration of the Minimum AccessVolume (MAV), which is a com-mitment of the Philippines underthe World Trade Organization.

During the forum, hog raisersrecommended that meat importsshould first inspected by the DA-BAI quarantine officers instead ofthe Customs examiners to deter-mine if these are offals, jowls orskin and not prime cuts, whichhave a higher tariff. On this, Sec.Alcala said the DA will formallyrequest Customs CommissionerAngelito Alvarez;

On the issue of traces ofbanned drugs (e.g. Salbutamoland costeroids) in local meat, A/Sec Catbagan urged the hog rais-ers to police their ranks. On this,Sec. Alcala instructed BAI Dir.Nuestro to recommend a com-posite technical working group(government and the private sec-tor) to convene and come up withconcrete action plans.

For his part, NMIS Dir. Bacayosaid they are now drafting a DAadministrative order for the man-datory accreditation of cold stor-ages and warehouses.

Corn harvest in 2011 is ex-pected to reach at least sevenmillion tons, 10% more than lastyear’s 6.38 M tons, due to bet-ter weather conditions that willencourage more farmers to plant,according to Roger V. Navarro,president of the Phil. Maize Fed-eration, Inc.

He is urging government toimplement infrastructure projectsnationwide to reduce postharvestlosses, guarantee corn quality,and longer shelf life.

DA assistant secretary DennisR. Araullo, rice and corn programnational coordinator, agrees withNavarro’s projection.

The University of Asia and thePacific Center for Food and AgriBusiness, in its Agricultural Sce-

To prepare the high value cropsector for the ill effects of climatechange, the Department of Agri-culture through its high-valuecrops development program(HVCDP) program is settingaside at least P160 million (M)or 20% of its 2011 P800-M bud-get for research and development(R&D).

Dante Delima, national HVCDPcoordinator, said as per instruc-tion of DA Sec. Proceso Alcala

High value crops programsets aside P160M for R&D

Sec. Alcala (2nd from left) appreciates milk blends produced by LanaoFoundation Inc. (LFI) at MINCOCO, Bangaan, Lanao del Norte.LFI processes various milk and dairy products which are sold incommercial outlets and through government milk-feeding programsof the departments of agriculture (DA), education (DepEd), and so-cial welfare and development (DSWD), benefiting to date more than100,000 pre-schoolers and grade 1 pupils in Lanao del Norte andadjoining provinces. Shown with him are (from left) DA-Nat’l. DairyAuthority administrator Grace Cenas, Land O’Lakes Phils. countrymanager Qazi Yawar Naem, USDA agricultural counselor PhilipShull, former Lanao del Norte governor Abdullah Dimaporo, andLanao del Norte 2nd Dist. Rep. Fatima Aliah Dimaporo.

narios 2010-2011 report, said italso expects 2011 corn output torebound to at least 7 M tons,driven by increase in area andyield, and favorable market pricesand weather conditions.

For its part, the DA’s Bureauof Agricultural Statistics (BAS)forecasts a higher first semestercorn output of 3.29M tons,36.4% more than 2.42 M tonslast year, citing an increase inharvest area and improvement inyield due to favorable weather.

Harvest area is expected toincrease to 1.118 million hectaresin the first semester, from967,000 hectares last year, whileyield per hectare may increaseto 2.95 MT from 2.5 MT last year.(Business World)

he has realigned the program’spriorities, focusing on R&D.

“We have a lot of initiatives [but]these are anchored on the needfor climate-change adaptation andmitigation,” Delima said.

Meanwhile, former DA chief Dr.William Dar, and currently direc-tor general of ICRISAT, handedover to Sec. Alcala new cultivarsof sweet sorghum, peanut and pi-geon pea for field testing in thePhilippines.

(Pls see photo story on p14)Dar said the Philippine

government’s agricultural policyfor the past 40 years heavily fa-vors rice. While rice is good, it isnot enough. Filipinos should haveother sources of protein and calo-ries, he added.

Apart from providing protein andcalories, dryland crops developedby ICRISAT have the potential toincrease the incomes of Filipinofarmers, said Dar.

ICRISAT scientists said thePhilippines can consider follow-ing the footsteps of Myanmar,which exported 445,520 tons ofpigeon pea, mostly to India in2008, valued at $234M.

Meanwhile, Dar is advocatingfor the creation of a PhilippineRainfed Agriculture Institute(Philrai) to institutionalize strat-

(Pls turn to p14)

Page 5: Aggie Trends January 2011

January 2011 5

An interactive SMS (shortmessaging service) format mobilephone concept for rice farmers,the first in the world, waslaunched on January 24 at the24 th anniversary of the DA’s

The Department of Agriculture(DA) through Bureau of Plant In-dustry (BPI) will strengthen ef-forts to attaining rice self-suffi-ciency in 2013 by establishingseed banks all over the country.

Secretary Proceso J. Alcala, ina speech during BPI’s 81st anni-versary, January 19, 2011, saidthe BPI, together with the DARegional Field Units, should es-tablish at least one or two seedbanks in each province.

This will ensure that farmerswill have immediate access togood seeds, especially whentheir respective areas are hit bytyphoons.

“We experienced the lack ofreasy source of seeds when ty-phoon Ondoy hit us two yearsago. It took us six months to re-cover from the damage it brought,and there were no quality seedsavailable,” Alcala said.

DDDDDA to put up seed banksA to put up seed banksA to put up seed banksA to put up seed banksA to put up seed banksin ein ein ein ein evvvvvererererery pry pry pry pry prooooovincevincevincevincevince

Setting up seeds banks willalso be among the country’smajor tools in adapting to thechallenges brought about by cli-mate change, he added.

“As rice is site-specific, it is im-portant that different sites in thecountry should have their ownsupply of good seeds that adaptwell in a particular location,” Sec.Alcala noted.

“Each seed bank should havegood drying facilities,” he said.

Sec. Alcala (left) lauds the Bureau of Plant Industry for its contribu-tion to the sustained development of Philippine agriculture particu-larly in the field of research and development and innovative ap-proaches to preventing and controlling crop pests and diseases, in-creasing crop production, and providing sources of livelihood andincomes to farmers and ruralfolk, during the agency’s 81st anniver-sary celebration. Listening at the head table are (from left) BPI ass’t.dir. Dante Delima, Usec. Joel Rudinas, BPI dir. Clarito Barron, BPIasst. dir. Henry Carpiso and Asec. Edilberto De Luna.(Pls turn to p15)

Usec. Bernadette Romulo-Puyat leads the unveiling ofNMRiceMobile’s toll-free numbers to officially open it to the pub-lic. With her are (from left): Ramon Isberto of Smart Communica-tions, Inc; Karen Eloisa Barroga, PhilRice; Dr. Achim Dobermann,IRRI Deputy Director General for Research; ATI Dir. Asteriot Saliot;and Jose Luis Reyes of Globe Telecoms.

ATI @ 24, launches NMRiceMobileAgricultural Training Institute(ATI).

Dubbed as the NMRice Mobile(Nutrient Manager for Rice), thetoll-free text messaging serviceis DA-ATI’s part of bringing saidelectronic program to ricefarmers, said ATI Director AsterioSaliot.

Powered by Globe Telecomsand SMART, the free SMS canbe accessed by both Globe andSMART subscribers.

A rice farmer can make a calland receive ferti l izerrecommendations through texteven if the subscriber’s Pesoaccount balance is zero.

To make a call, subscribersshould dial 2378 for SMART and2378 for Globe.

The DA’s partners in thiscollaborative undertaking are:International Rice ResearchInstitute (IRRI) and PhilRice;Globe Telecoms; SMARTCommunications, Inc.; andUniversity of SoutheasternPhilippines and West VisayasState University.

Rowena Castillo, of IRRI, saidthe mobile phone application willuse an IVR or interactive voiceresponse, an automatedcommunication technology. Shesaid the electronic extensionservice is geared towardaccelerating the transfer of riceproduction technology through a“quick guide.”

The quick guide is a set ofquestions with multiple choiceanswers. The subscriber isguided by a recording in hispreferred language: Tagalog,Cebuano, Iloko or English.

Dr. Achim Dobermann, IRRIDeputy Director-General forResearch, said with thisinteractive communicationthrough mobile phone, thescience and technology of riceproduction can now beappreciated fully such thatfertilizer application can now beprecise, that is “done in the rightway, at the right time, with theright amount.”

Years ago, Dr. Dobermannrecalled that he was amazed tofind out that Filipino farmers applyfertilizer differently everywhere inthe country.

Now, with the NM Rice Mobile,he said “this is the first type ofapplication in the world. This is atrue milestone for the rice farmersin the world.”

Undersecretary Berna Romulo-Puyat, who represented Sec.Proceso Alcala, pushed thebutton to a video clipdemonstration on how theNMRice Mobile operates, saidthat the project will initially coverfive provinces, namely Isabela,Nueva Ecija, Bohol, Iloilo andAgusan del Norte.

Winding his short message,Dr. Dobermann said withoptimism: “I look forward that this[NMRice Mobile] applicationwork extensively.” (ATI)(Pls turn to p15)

The Philippine Coconut Author-ity (PCA) inaugurated recently aP216-million Aurora Province Co-conut Development Center(APCDC), at a 133-hectare pub-lic land in Dinalungan,.

Newly-sworn in PCA Adminis-trator Euclides G. Forbes led theceremonial ribbon cutting, alongwith Aurora Congressman JuanEdgardo Angara, DA Ass’t. Sec.Edilberto M. De Luna andDinalungan Mayor Tito Tubigan.

Forbes said the APCDC is acollaborative venture between theDA-PCA, Department of Environ-ment and Natural Resources, and

PCA puts up P216M coconut dev’t centerin Aurora

the Local Governments of Auroraand Dinalungan.

Commenced in 2008, the fundsearmarked are for site develop-ment, planting of mother cocopalms, construction of laborato-ries and other facilities, and forinitial operation.

He expressed gratitude toSenator Edgardo J. Angara andCongressman Sonny Angara fortheir conceptualization of theproject, and for their initiative ofsecuring the needed funds.

“This pioneering facility will bethe center for seed nut produc-tion that will cater to the needs

for planting materials, not only inthe province of Aurora, but alsoof the whole of Luzon” Forbessaid.

The APCDC will be the PCA’sbase in the massive coconutplanting and replanting as orderedby DA Secretary Alcala.

“As the PCA first and only co-conut development center in thispart of our country, APCDC willshowcase all the matured tech-nologies generated from all ourother research centers” Forbessaid.

The Center will engage in em-bryo culture of makapuno for

Page 6: Aggie Trends January 2011

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Thus is the continuing mission of Secretary Proceso ‘Procy’J. Alcala, as he resumed his regional visits from January 14 to28, which took him to several provinces and four regions —consulting, mingling and sharing light moments and jokes withfarmers, fisherfolk, local officials and other agri-fishery stake-holders.

On January 14, a day after meeting with fishery industry officialsat Navotas Fish Port — Sec. Alcala joined President Benigno S.Aquino III in Southern Leyte, at St. Bernard Central ElementarySchool, where they comforted flood-affected ruralfolk and farmers,sharing with them relief goods, certified rice and vegetable seeds,and other farm inputs and implements.

He was accompanied by DA region 8 Dir. Leo Cañeda and Ass’t.Dir. Dante Delima of the Bureau of Plant Industry.

Later in the afternoon, he attended a farmers’ forum and multi-sectoral consultation in Calbiga, Samar.

Among the local officials present were: Governor Sharee Ann Tande los Santos, Vice Governor Stephen James Tan, Rep. MilagrosTan, Calbiga Mayor Melchor Nacario.

Later in the evening, he traveled to the Visayas State University(VSU) campus, in Baybay, Leyte, had dinner and thereafter dis-cussed possible joint projects with local executives and VSU offi-cials.

Among the local officials present were: Rep. Jose Carlos Cariand former Rep. Carmen Cari.

The following day, he had a breakfast meeting with the membersof DA Region 8 Management Committee (RMC), led by Dir. Cañeda,and thereafter visited several facilities of the VSU, before flying backto Manila.

Below are the highlights of Sec Procy’s regional and provincialfield visits:

• Jan. 17 (Pagbilao, Quezon)At Pueblo Por La Playa, he was briefed by Mindanao Rural Devel-

opment Program (MRDP) officials, led by DA Region 10 Dir. LealynRamos and MRDP deputy director Arnel de Mesa, on the status ofMRDP project implementation, and discussed strategies to speedup the program.

He met over lunch with the DA agriculture attaches and interna-tional relations division staff, led by Jojo Lazaro, who presentedtheir workshop outputs. Sec Procy asked the agri attaches to con-tinuously seek export markets for traditional and emerging Philip-pine fresh and processed farm and fishery food products.

President Aquino hands over relief goods to families displaced byflashfloods at Saint Bernard Elementary School in Guinsaugon,Southern, Leyte.(Malacañang photo)

He presented the National Farmers Registry System to QuezonGovernor David ‘Jay-Jay’ Suarez and dozens of Quezon municipalmayors, as the province is one of the three pilot areas where farm-ers and fishermen will be surveyed as part of the DA national project,entitled “Unified and Enterprise Geospatial Information System(UEGIS).”

• Jan 18 (Tiaong & Pagbilao, Quezon)He hosted breakfast meeting with World Bank (WB) and US Dep’t.

of Agriculture officials, led by WB Philippines country director BertHoffman and USDA counselor Philip Shull, at Earthkeepers’ Farmin Tiaong and then visited its organic farm. He accompanied thegroup at the Sentrong Pamilihan ng Produktong Agrikultura ngQuezon.

• Jan 20 (Agusan del Sur)After several postponements last year, Sec Procy finally visited

CARAGA, staying for three days, starting off with a dialogue withlocal chief executives led by Governor Adolf Edward Plaza and Reps.

Sec. Alcala (2nd fromright) appreciates a gi-ant ube at Visayas StateUniversity (VSU), alongwith (from left)VSUPres. Jose Bacusmo, DARegion 8 Dir. LeoCaneda, PhilRootcropsRTC Dr. Emma Data,and High Value Com-mercial Crops ProgramNational CoordinatorDante Delima.

‘Bridging the gap, feeling the pulse’

With agricultural attaches

With World Bank and USDA officials

Page 7: Aggie Trends January 2011

January 2011 7

With Agusan del Sur officials

Maria Valentina Plaza and Evelyn Mellana, and a dozen Agusan delSur municipal mayors, a provincial training center, Patin-ay,Prosperidad. He was accompanied by DA-CARAGA dir. ReinerioBelarmino, Jr. and other DA officials and staff.

After lunch, at a nearby gymnasium, he greeted about 1,000 farm-ers, fishers and ruralfolk, and thereafter distributed several farm in-puts, implements, tractors and postharvest equipment to farmersthrough their respective local officials and Gov. Plaza.

- He keynoted a Hog Raisers Summit, at Waterfront Hotel,along with Senator Francis Pangilinan, chair of the Senate agricul-ture committee. Attended by about 300 hog raisers, the forum wasalso graced by several members of the House of Representatives.

- He had a lunch meeting with DA region 7 officials and staff,and other stakeholders, where he listened and reacted to outputs ofthe Central Visayas Vegetable Stakeholders Workshop, led by Dir.Dante Delima of the HVCDP.

• Jan 21 (Surigao del Norte) - He consulted with Surigao del Norte farmers, fishers and local

officials, led by Gov. Sol Matugas, along with Rep. FranciscoMatugas, Rep. Guillermo Romarate, and Surigao City mayor ErnestoMatugas.

• Jan 21 (PhilRice, Agusan del Norte) - After lunch, he consulted with farmers and officials and staff of

the Philippine Rice Research Institute experiment station at RTRomualdez, Agusan del Norte, where he also distributed some farminputs and implements. Also present were Agusan del Norte Gov.Erlpe John Amante, PhilRice Dir. Ronilo Beronio, and PhilRice-Agusan branch manager Abner Montecalvo, Dir. Belarmino, andlocal officials.

• Jan 21 (Butuan City)- He had a dinner meeting with Agusan del Norte local chief ex-

ecutives, led by Butuan City Mayor Ferdinand Amante, Jr., Rep.Angel Amante-Matba, Rep. Jose Aquino, and several municipalmayors.

• Jan 22 (Butuan City) He had a breakfast meeting with the members of the DA-CARAGA

Regional Management Committee (RMC), led by Dir. Belarmino,where he issued several directives, among them was the attain-ment of rice self-sufficiency target by 2013, repair of irrigation sys-tems, reducing the processing and payment of crop insurance claims,

and provision of quality, efficient and fast service to farmers, fishersand other stakeholders.

Thereafter, he met with the local media for a brief press confer-ence.

Finally, he has a dialogue with dozens of NGOs in the region,where possible collaborative projects were proposed and discussed.

In all, during his three-day visit, Sec Procy has committed atleast P29-million of various agricultural and infrastructure projects,on top of the cost repair and rehabilitation of irrigation systems,upon the validation and recommendation of NIA administrator Anto-nio Nangel.

•January 25 (Bohol)- He keynoted the Bohol Organic Agriculture Summit and 11th

Ubi Festival, at the Bohol Cultural Center, where some 1,000 farm-ers, stakeholders and local officials attended, led by Bohol Gov.Edgar Chatto.

- After lunch, he visited several agricultural projects such as theOrganic Rice Marketing Center of the Carmen Samahang NayonMulti-Purpose Cooperative, the BOATech Center of the ProvincialGovernment, Bayungan Dam, and the DA-Central Visayas IntegratedAgricultural Research Center.

- He also visited the Dairy Multiplier Farm in Ubay Stock Farm,accompanied by National Dairy Authority administrator Grace Cenas.His visit was auspicious as a calf was born that day. It was chris-tened ‘Procy’ by Adm. Cenas.

With Bohol Gov.Edgar Chatto(3rd from left)and a newborncalf at the DAUbay StockFarm. Alsoshown are NDAadministratorGrace Cenas(4th from left)and DA techni-cal assistantTeresa Saniano .

- Thereafter, he had a dinner cum dialogue at ‘The Barn,’ Boholbee farm, in Dauis, with Gov. Chatto, and officials of NGOs in theorganic agriculture movement. The dialogue was moderated by withDA-ATI Region 7 Director Carolyn May Daquio, and BISAD Presi-dent Eulale Albuladura.

• Jan 26 (Cebu City)- He keynoted a Hog Raisers Summit, at Waterfront Hotel, alongwith Senator Francis Pangilinan, chair of the Senate agriculturecommittee. Attended by about 300 hog raisers, the forum was alsograced by several members of the House of Representatives.- He had a lunch meeting with DA region 7 officials and staff, andother stakeholders, where he listened and reacted to outputs of theCentral Visayas Vegetable Stakeholders Workshop, led by Dir. DanteDelima of the HVCDP.

(Pls turn to p13)

With Surigao del Norte officials and farmers

With Sen. Francis Pangilinan andRep. Mark Llandro Mendoza atHog Raisers Summit, Cebu.

Page 8: Aggie Trends January 2011

8

DDDDDA writerA writerA writerA writerA writer,,,,, 3 other 3 other 3 other 3 other 3 otherssssswin awin awin awin awin agggggri jourri jourri jourri jourri journ an an an an awwwwwararararardsdsdsdsds

Three writers and a TV agricul-ture program of the Departmentof Agriculture won in the 4th BrightLeaf Agricultural JournalismAwards, sponsored by Philip Mor-ris Fortune Tobacco Corp., Janu-ary 18, 2011, at Sofitel Hotel,Manila.

DA Information Service staffAdora Rodriguez won as the‘Best Regional News Story’ forher article (at right), ‘Greening’ Mt.Banahaw.’

The article—published in ThePhilippine Star agriculture sec-tion, September 20, 2009—re-lates the success story of awholesale vegetable trading post,called Sentrong Pamilihan ngProduktong Agrikultura ngQuezon, built by Sec. Alcalawhen he was then a Congress-man of the 2nd district of Quezon.

The facility paved the way indeveloping and expanding the veg-etable industry in Quezon, pro-viding comfortable incomes tohundreds of farmers and theirfamilies, particularly in the fivetowns at the foothil ls of Mt.Banahaw.

To date, Sentrong Pamilihan isone of the country’s model agri-cultural trading posts.

The three other DA winnersare:

• Regional Feature Story -“Bringing Back the Grains” byCharisma Love Gado of the Phil-ippine Rice Research Institute

Adora Rodriguez poses with hertrophy.

• National Features Story - “Ef-forts to manage and restore seacucumber population underway”by Edmon Agron of the Bureauof Agricultural Research

• Television Program - “BagongMaunlad na Agrikultura” of theDA-National Agribusiness Corp.aired on IBC-13

The other 4th Bright Leafawardees are:

• National News Story - “DAbanks on ratooning technology forRP’s rice self-sufficiency in 2013"by Jonathan Mayuga (The Busi-ness Mirror)

• Agriculture Story - “NGO pro-motes ducks as solutions to glo-bal warming, rice sufficiency” byMach Alberto Fabe (BusinessMirror)

• Tobacco Story - “Tobacco notjust for making cigarettes” byTeddy Molina (The PhilippineStar)

• Radio Program Segment -“Life in Tobacco Farming” by JunVillanueva of Bombo Radyo

• Tobacco Photo - by FernandoZapata (The Philippine Star)

• Agriculture Photo - “LuntiangDaan” by Edgardo Espiritu (ThePhilippine Daily Inquirer)

Page 9: Aggie Trends January 2011

Postharvest facilities aremuch needed infrastructure thatbenefit many small farmers.

For corn farmers in BarangayGanasi, Upi in Maguindanao,the establishment of a solardryer facility was a sight ofrelief as they can now over-come years of several farmlosses due to absence of apostharvest facility.

“We used to dry our har-vested corn directly on theground or use trapal [tarpaulin]in drying our produce. Thispractice is not only laboriousbut also affects the quality ofour produce,” said Lato Khalidthe president of Ganasi Agri-Development Multi-PurposeCooperative(GADMPC).

Kahlid said their area beinghilly and with abundant rainyear round is ideal for cornproduction. However lack ofpostharvest facility preventedfarmers from producing grainssufficiently.

To address their need forpostharvest facility, theGADMPC sought the assis-tance of their municipal agricul-ture office and endorsed theirproposal to the Mindanao RuralDevelopment Program (MRDP).

MRDP is a long-term povertyalleviation initiative imple-mented under the Departmentof Agriculture (DA). Through itsCommunity Fund for Agricul-tural Development (CFAD),

livelihood assistance areprovided to boost rural incomesof small farmers acrossMindanao .

MRDP and the local govern-ment of Upi established a multi-purpose solar drying pavementto address the postharvestneeds of some 60 cooperativemembers.

“The establishment of thesolar dryer is a big help to uscorn farmers as drying grains isno longer laborious as before.The facility has also the abilityto dry more grain in shortertime so we can easily store ourproduce before heavy raincomes,” he said.

He added that market-valueof their produce has alsoimproved since the dryingpavement has improved thequality of their corn grains.

“We are glad that the MRDP,DA-ARMM, and our localofficials teamed up to provideus this much needed facilityand will surely help us inboosting our income,” he said.

MRDP program directorLealyn Ramos said cornpostharvest is one of thepriority initiatives of the DA as ithelps increase farmers’ incomeand at the same time reducepostharvest losses.

Ramos said corn is one ofthe most important crops as itis not only use as secondstaple but also has an increas Abaca fiber is known for its

versatility.It is used to make bags,

ropes, tea bags, paper, furni-ture, hammocks, and world-class textiles.

Many people may not knowthat it is also used to make x-ray negatives, optical lens, wireinsulator, and automobilecomponents.

For the Lumads of Kiamba,Saragani Province, this ivory-colored, long fiber is more thanjust a material but a cord of life.They have been planting abacasince the time of their forefa-thers.

“It has been our crop andsource of income,” saysErdelina Abobol, a member ofthe Kapate Abaca Farmers’Association (KAFA).

KAFA sells abaca fibers to alocal consolidator. Abobol,however, admits that before,their production was verymeager due to the smallnumber of abaca planted andlack of proper equipment andtraining. (Pls turn to p13)

“Our practice before was tosell our abaca fibers as rawmaterials produced by ourmanual stripper.

But since it was not of goodquality, it was bought verycheap, for P35 per kilo,” saysAbobol. “We wanted to expandbut because we are really poor,we cannot buy additionalplanting materials and otherinputs to expand the number ofour abaca plants.”

So when they learned thatthe Department of Agriculture(DA) had given poor farmersfinancial assistance, theydecided to try their luck andhoped to access funding thatthey had been waiting for. “Wethought we might qualify,” addsAbobol.

With the help of the municipalagricultural technician, KAFAprepared their proposal andother requirements and sentthem to the office of theMindanao Rural DevelopmentProgram(MRDP).

MRDP is a long-term poverty

Members of the Kapate Abaca Farmers’ Association produce qual-ity abaca fibers using the brand new stripping machine procuredthrough the funding assistance of the MRDP. (Noel T. Provido) (Inset)Erdelina Ababol, a T’boli beneficiary of the abaca production projectof the DA-MRDP shows off one abaca bale locally named tinagakthat sells at the local market at P250.00 a kilo. Members of theirfarmers’ association consolidate and sell these bales in the smallorganization-owned sari-sari store where Abobol is the assignedshopkeeper. (Sherwin B. Manual)

The solar dryer facility had been a big help to this farmer-benefi-ciary in Brgy. Ganasi, Upi, Maguindanao as it hastens the drying ofhis corn produce and improved the quality of grains. The facilityhad been established through the partnership of DA-MRDP andlocal town and provincial officials. (Sherwin Manual)

ing demand as a source offeeds for the growing livestockindustry.

“The postharvest interventionsuch as provision of solardryers is one of the best wayswe can increase corn produc-tion in the country and raise ourfarmers’ income which is thebest way to fight rural poverty,’she said. (Noel T. Provido/DA-MRDP).

Solar dryer improves corn production in Maguindanao

Abaca gives hope to Sarangani Lumads

9January 2011

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PNoy turns over farm inputs,implements to CARAGA LGUs

President Benigno S. AquinoIII turned-over various farmmachinery and inputs to fourprovinces and one city in Caragathat were ravaged by floodsduring his visit,January 14, 2011at Bancasi Airport, Butuan City.

Together with DA CaragaRegional Director Reinerio B.Belarmino, Jr., Pres. Aquinohanded the certificates of turn-over to Butuan City MayorFerdinand Amante, Jr., Agusandel Norte Governor Eripe JohnAmante, Agusan del SurGovernor Adolf Edward Plaza,Surigao del Sur Governor JohhnyPimentel, and Surigao del NorteGovernor Arturo Carlos Egay.

Each of the above-mentionedlocal government units receivedagricultural inputs to includethree sets of pump and engine,200 bags of certified seeds andtwo boxes of assorted vegetableseeds to augment the efforts ofeach LGU to help its constituents

particularly the farmers to startanew after the flood.

The President, likewise, gavemedicines and relief goods to theflood victims.

Regional Director BlancheGobenciong of the Office of theCivil Defense (OCD) said theestimated damage due to thefloods on the agricultural sectoramounted to more than P160million, broken down as: for riceand corn, P72.5M; other crops,P14.8M; livestock, P3.4M;fisheries, P16.7M; and irrigation,P58M.

Caraga region posted anestimated total agriculturaldamage of P165.6M, with Agusandel Sur having the biggestdamage in agriculture, atP105.6M; followed by Agusan delNorte, P27.85M; Surigao del Sur,P21.33M; Surigao del Norte,P10.5M; and Dinagat Islands,P346,000.

President Aquino (2nd from left) presents a certificate of turn-overof farm implements to Butuan City Mayor Ferdinand Amante, Jr. onbehalf of farmer flood victims . Also shown (from left) are DA Region13 Director Reinerio Belarmino, Jr., DSWD Secretary Dinky Soliman(partly hidden), and DILG Sec. Jesse Robredo.

Agriculture Secretary ProcesoJ. Alcala has committed to ex-pand irrigated areas in EasternVisayas, starting in Samar, toboost the province’s rice self-suf-ficiency level to 100 percent by2013.

He made the commitment dur-ing a multi-sectoral forum inCalbiga, Samar, attended by 300farmers, fishers, municipal agri-culture officers and extensionworkers, seed growers, livestockraisers, and LGU officials, led bySamar Governor Sharee Ann Tan-delos Santos, Vice GovernorStephen James Tan, Congress-woman Milagros Tan and CalbigaMayor Melchor Nacario.

He instructed the DA’s Na-tional Irrigation Administration

DA to irrigate more areas in E. Visayasand Pinacbacdao, all in Samar.

He also instructed the DA-BFAR Region 8 to put up morefish cages in mariculture parksto be rented by small fishermen.

Before visiting Samar, Sec.Alcala joined President BenignoAquino in St. Bernard, Leyte,where the President was briefedby regional officials on the extentof flooding as well as governmentinitiatives to help the victims, andplans to avoid similar occur-rences in the future. DA Region8 Dir. Leo Cañeda briefed themon the extent of damage on theagriculture sector.

Dir. Cañeda and Bureau ofPlant Industry (BPI) AssistantDirector Dante Delima distributedfarm inputs to flood affected farm-ers consisting of 500 packs ofassorted vegetable seeds and 100bags of certified rice seeds tofarmers.

Alcala’s visit to Leyte andSamar forms part of a series ofconsultations and ‘town hall meet-ings’ to promote President’s ag-riculture agenda, and seek thesupport of provincial governors,congressmen, and women, dis-trict representatives, city andmunicipal mayors and other ag-ricultural stakeholders to attainself-sufficiency and food securitygoals by 2013.

The Department of Agriculture,through assistant secretaryDennis Araullo--concurrentnational rice and corn programcoordinator, who representedSec. Proceso J. Alcala--turned-over an Integrated GrainsFeedstock Service Center

North Cotabato farmers get P10M farm facilities

(NIA) Regional Manager RomeoG. Quiza to submit the feasibil-ity study through NIA Adminis-trator Antonio Nangel.

The goal is to expand theregion’s irrigated areas by 6,000hectares in the next three yearsto benefit initially Calbiga and fouradjoining towns in Samar.

Sec. Alcala said the DA-BFARwill expand the Mariculture Park(MP) program in EasternVisayas, particularly in MaquedaBay and San Juanico Strait, andappropriate coves and coastalwaters.

Also, the DA-BFAR will put upsix multi-species freshwater fishhatcheries, one each in the mu-nicipalities of Calbiga, Villareal,Talolora, Daram, San Sebastian

Sec. Alcala (left) answers a query of a livestock raiser (standing,right photo) from Leyte during a consultation with farmers, fisher-men, livestock raisers, municipal agriculturists and extension work-ers, and local officials, in Calbiga, Samar, January 14, 2011.

(IGFSC) to North CotabatoFederation of Free FarmersCooperative.

The multi-mill ion projectincludes two units of farm tractor;two units of biomass fedmechanical grain dryers; andother corn development fundcomponents.

The project was funded underthe DA’s National Food Authority-Corn Development Fund.

Secretary Alcala extended hisgratitude to former DA secretaryLeonardo Montemayor, Presidentof the Federation of Free Farmersfor the initiative in making thisproject possible.

“Through this initiative, theproject will benefit local farmersto produce and earn morethrough better and safer qualitycorn grains and reducepostharvest losses,” Alcalaadded in his speech read byASec. Araullo.

He likewise hoped that withthe facilities, the national cornproduction of 7.26 million metrictons will be attained in 2011, andwill help make the country self-sufficient in corn as early as2014.

“We will invest in infrastructure,post-harvest, technical andresearch, credit and marketingsupport,” Alcala added.

Meanwhile, the DA will expandfarmlands devoted to corn,especially the white variety byencouraging more farmers to useorganic and microbial fertilizersto reduce production costs andincrease their income.

The DA will continue to promotehybrid corn, and construct morepostharvest processing andtrading centers nationwide. (DA-RAFID 12)

Page 11: Aggie Trends January 2011

January 2011 11

Bicol flood damage tops P13M

CARAGA gets P30M

he mentioned are: irrigation,particularly in the repair andrehabilitation of communalirrigation systems (CIS),postharvest facilities, organicfertilizer and seed productionassistance, and expandmarketing assistance.

While in Sultan Kudarat, Sec.Alcala turned-over several farmequipment and inputs to farmersthrough the ProvincialGovernment

These include: 20 units ofshallow tube wells, 23 units ofshredder, one unit of overheadsprinkler irrigation, 10,000 piecesof coffee planting materials, 2,000sachets of assorted vegetableseeds and 50 crates of mangoflower inducer. (DA-Region 12RAFID)

no chance of recovery, toreplant again.

Those who have not yetplanted can still avail of thediscounted palay seeds underthe DA’s Rapid Seed SupplyFinancing Project (RaSSFiP).

Under this program, eligiblefarmers are entitled to a bag(40 kg) of certified inbred seedsper hectare.

The DA through the NFA willprovide a seed subsidy ofP600, while the other half ofP600 shall be paid by farmersas equity.

Eligible to avail of this seedsubsidy are farm owners, farmtenants, leaseholders andadministrators, who areactually tilling the land andwhose farms are located inrainfed areas and lowlandirrigated areas, with an averageyield of less than 3.8 metric tonper hectare.

RaSSFiP, which will end onMarch 16, 2011, is fundedthrough a loan from theInternational Fund forAgriculture and Development(IFAD) and grant assistancefrom the EuropeanCommission. (DA-RAFID 5)

SPJA vows support to Regn 12 farmers

Close to P30 million in fundswill be invested by the Depart-ment of Agriculture in the prov-inces of Agusan del Norte,Agusan del Sur and Surigao delNorte to enable small farmers andfishers increase their productiv-ity andincomes.

“President Aquino wantsspeedy help delivered to the ag-riculture sector here,” Alcala saidduring a farmers’ congress at-tended by more than three thou-sand Caragaons composed offarmers, fisherfolk, and otherstakeholders, congressmen, gov-ernors and other officials of thelocal government.

A total of P10M will be initiallyallotted to a P25M-Surigao Cityirrigation project.

“To attain our self-sufficiencytarget in rice, we have to giveimportance to the water systems,as it remains to be on top of ourpriorities,” Alcala stressed.

Another P7.6M will be allottedfor the rehabilitation of affectedagricultural infrastructure, P2.1Mfor farm to market road projects,and P9.4M for various projects in-cluding the establishment of a

Liquid Nitrogen Plant under theUnited Artificial Insemination Pro-gram under the Bureau of AnimalIndustry.

“We will also provide supportfor high value vegetable produc-tion in such a way that more farm-ers would have the opportunity toplant cauliflower, broccoli, lettuce,bulb onion and ginger, and in re-turn earn more,” Alcala said.

Alcala announced thatMindanao will also benefit fromthe mariculture program of the DAthru the Bureau of Fisheries andAquatic Resources (BFAR)which aims to increase the pro-duction of various marine andaquatic species.

He directed BFAR DirectorMalcolm Sarmiento to immedi-ately conduct site visits and vali-dation to identify additional re-quirements needed to success-fully implement the maricultureproject.

The farmers’ congress servedas a venue for farmers and offi-cials from the local and nationalgovernment to discuss issuesand propose measures to ad-dress agri-fishery concerns. (DA-CARAGA RAFID)

Some 2,900 hectares of riceareas in 12 municipalities inAlbay were flooded early thismonth, causing an estimateddamage of about P13.38million.

This was reported to Sec.Proceso Alcala by DA BicolRegional Technical Director forOperations and Extension,Marilyn Sta. Catalina.

She said majority of theaffected rice crops are eithernewly planted and in theirvegetative stages as thecropping season has juststarted.

She added that out of the totalaffected areas, 86% or 2,500hectares have a chance torecover and only 400 hectareshave no chance of recovery.

Rice areas affected by floodswere: Tobaco City with 932hectares; Legaspi City, 592hectares; and Malinao, 420hectares.

Other affected areas are thetowns of Camalig, Daraga,Guinobatan, Manito, Malilipot,Oas, Polangui and Sto.Domingo.

Meanwhile, DA Region 5director Jose V. Dayao urgedfarmers, whose rice crops have

Agriculture Secretary ProcesoJ. Alcala, in his recent visit toSOCCSKSARGEN, committedfull support to improving the livingconditions of the region’s smallfarmers and fisherfolk.

He urged them to work closelywith local and DA officials so theycan synchronize efforts to achievethe agriculture roadmap that theDA is trying to achieve.

“From seeds to marketing,kasama po ninyo ang DA sapagplano kung ano ang itatanim,kung paano makakaharvest ngmahusay, at sa paghahanap ngmerkado” emphasized Sec.Alcala during a farmers’ dialoguein Isulan, Sultan Kudarat and inKoronadal City, South Cotabato.

He also enjoined uplandfarmers to plant coffee andcacao.

Though seed subsidy is beingsuspended, Sec. Alcalamentioned other interventions tohelp the farmers.

One of these is the Rapid SeedSupply Financing Project(RaSSFiP), funded through aloan and grant respectivelyprovided by the International Fundfor Agriculture Development(IFAD) and implemented by theDA and NFA.

Through the RaSSFiP, farmerscan avail of subsidized certifiedinbred seeds.

Other interventions which the

DA Region 4A Dir. Abelardo Bragas (3th from right) spearheads thedispersal of 60 female piglets to recipients from the 4th district ofBatangas, January 10, 2011, in Padre Garcia. This is the thirdtranche of the livelihood program started August 2010 in LucenaCity. The project is jointly implemented with Batangas 4th DistrictRep. Mark Llandro Mendoza, Quezon 2nd District Rep. Irvin Alcalaand Rotary Club of Lipa City.

The DA-Bureau of Fisheries andAquatic Resources (BFAR) tech-nology is trying a technology thatwould cut the cost in producing tPacific white shrimps (Penaeusvannamei).

The technique is being experi-mented on by researchers atBFAR’s National IntegratedFisheries Technology Develop-ment Center (BFAR-).

New techno to cutshrimp prodn cost

(Pls turn to p12)

Page 12: Aggie Trends January 2011

To enable flood-stricken farmers in CARAGA recover and start anew, the DA has provided them farm equipment and inputs such as certifiedrice and vegetable seeds. Photo shows Sec. Alcala (top left, middle) handing over keys of two tractors to Agusan del Sur Governor AdolphEdward Plaza, as DA-CARAGA director Reinerio Belarmino looks on; and certificates of entitlement to farm equipment, livelihoodprojects, and inputs (bottom photo) to Agusan del Sur Reps. Maria Valentina Plaza (1st District) and Evelyn Mellana (2nd Dist.), Vice Gov.Santiago Cane, Jr. and municipal mayors, during a consultation with hundreds of farmers, fishers and ruralfolk (right).

DA-BSWM, LGUs to rehab watershedsThe DA through the Bureau of

Soils and Water Managemen(BSWM), in partnership with con-cerned local government units willrehabilitate three watersheds inMindanao, namely: Linamon inLanao del Norte, Gigaquit inSurigao del Norte, and Nasipit inAgusan del Norte.

In a report to SecretaryProceso Alcala, BSWM Dr.Silvino Q. Tejada said the reha-bilitation will be undertaken aspart of the natural resource com-ponent of the Mindanao Rural De-velopment Program 2 (MRDP2),jointly funded by the World Bank,National Government and LGUs.

He said the BSWM has fin-ished the evaluation of the threewatersheds, which should be re-habilitated and protected to pre-vent soil erosion, and thus pro-vide farmers and ruralfolk sus-tained source of livelihood, andmost importantly water.

If a watershed area is not ingood condition, it would be veryimpossible for it to support a farm-ing community especially withclimate change and excessiverainfall caused by La Nina, Tejadaadded.

The BSWM’s survey of theKinabangan Watershed inNasipit, Agusan del Norte showedthat its soil, land and water re-sources are “over exploited be-yond its capacity resulting to lowproductivity of various farm areas.”

About 4,250 hectares (68.5%

of its total area) could be plantedwith fruit trees and vegetables likesweet pepper, pole sitao andampalaya, including industrialcrops.

For Linamon watershed, some1,825 hectares (88% of totalarea) could be planted also tohigh value crops.

The same is true for GigaquitWatershed in Surigao del Norte,where some 15,770 hectares(67% of total area) could be de-veloped.

The BSWM and LGUs plan toimplement joint initiatives to pre-serve, protect and develop thethree watershed ares.

New techno to ... (from p11)

The experiment which is on acommercial scale will determinethe growth performance of thewhite shrimp at different climaticconditions and culture densities(intensive, semi-intensive andextensive), said Dr. Westly R.Rosario, NIFTDC chief in BonuanBinloc, Dagupan City.

He said they are now workingon ways where water changingof the hatchery would not be asfrequent.

“Since last year, we did an ex-periment where we wouldn’t haveto change water every so often.Though we have the luxury ofspace in the Philippines forponds. The down side of this isthat these ponds are designed formilkfish production,” saidRosario.

Even with different densities,white shrimp could grow within10 to 30 square foot. Rosariosaid it is ideal to have a 10 squarefoot, as it would not require elec-tricity to operate the paddlewheels.

The white shrimp project is nolonger being conducted by theBFAR, and it is now up to busi-nessmen to adopt it.

Fishfarmers are advised to buybroodstock from BFAR-accred-ited hatcheries. Potential grow-ers are also required to secureoperation permits.

There are nine accreditedhatcheries that are strategicallylocated in the Philippines, saidRosario. (Malaya)

These include: proper organicand inorganic balance fertiliza-tion, and composting; provisionof support services such as con-struction, improvement and reha-bilitation of the farm machineryequipment and post harvest fa-cilities; introduction of improvedand modern farming technology;and facilitation of credit and mar-ket assistance.

With a total 21,840 hectaresthat could be planted to high valuecrops, the three watershedscould greatly contribute to pro-viding food and livelihood to tensof thousands of farm-families inLanao del Norte, Surigao delNorte and Agusan del Norte.Tejada said. (DA-BSWM)

12

Agriculture Secretary ProcesoJ. Alcala has sworn in a newbatch of officials of the Depart-ment of Agriculture, bureausand attached agencies and cor-porations, who were recently ap-pointed by President Benigno S.Aquino III. a

They are:• Amalia Datukan - DA Region12 Director;• Ahadulla Sajili, Al-Haj - BFARRegn. 9 Dir.;• Jose Balatucan, Jr. and JimmyOlivio, DA Ass’t. Dirs., both ofRegn 12;• Jennilyn Malateo-Dawayan,DA-CAR Ass’t. Dir.;• Atty. Euclides G. Forbes -Phil

SPJA swears in new DA family officialsippine Coconut Authority Admin-istrator;• Atty. Rodolfo T. Paz - Philip-pine Fisheries Development Au-thority General Manager;• Lorna Grace Rosario - Na-tional Irrigation AdministrationDep. Adm. for Finance;• Dr. Alicia Lustre - TechnicalConsultant on DA Food Safetyand CODEX; and• Phil. Sugar Corp. Board Mem-bers: Augusto B. Araneta, Jr.,Joseph Conrad F. Ledesma,Cornelio V. Toreja, Francis P.Treñas, Freddie W. Zayco, Rob-ert G. Abello, Andrew O.Regalado, Joseph Edgar M.Sarrosa, and TeotimoBallesteros.

Page 13: Aggie Trends January 2011

13January 2011

Bridging the gap ... (from p7)

• Jan 26 (Cagayan de Oro)- He visited the Cagayan de Oro Cooperative Market Place, Wild

Life Reservation Center, Zoological and Botanical Park, which isoperated by the Xavier University College of Agriculture.

- At a post-dinner meeting, he was briefed on the updates of theMindanao Rural Development Program (MRDP), led by Dir. LealynRamos and deputy dir. Arnel de Mesa.

• Jan 27 (DA Regional Office, Cagayan de Oro) - Over breakfast at the DA region 10 office, he met with the DA

Regional Management Committee members, officials and staff, andagri-fishery industry stakeholders. He also swore in the officers ofthe DA-RFU 10 Employees Association.

- At 9 am, he keynoted the MRDP2 Consultative Meeting withmore than 100 Mindanao local chief executives in attendance. (Plssee related story on page 1.)

- After lunch, he opened a consultation with Bukidnon local chiefexecutives regarding the forthcoming survey as part of the NationalFarmers Registry System. The province is among the three pilotprovinces (the tow are Leyte and Quezon) where the exhaustivesurvey will be conducted.

• Jan 27 (Tubod, Lanao del Norte) - He dialogued with farmer-leaders and local officials of Lanao del

Norte, led by Gov. Mohamad Khalid Q. Dimaporo, and Representa-tives Imelda Quibranza Dimaporo and Fatima Aliah Dimaporo, andformer governor and Rep. Abdullah D. Dimaporo. He also handedover 600 bags of certified rice seeds to flood-affected farmers.

• Jan 28 (Sultan Naga Dimaporo, Lanao del Norte)- He visited the milk processing facility and dairy farms of Lanao

Foundation Inc. (LFI’s), along with Reps. Imelda and Fatima AliahDimaporo, and former Gov. Abdullah Dimaporo, Lanao del Sur Gov.Antonio Ceriles and Rep. Aurora Ceriles, USDA agriculture counse-lor Philip Shull, and Land O’Lakes Philippines country managerQazi Yawar Naem.

He led the distribution of milk to 300 children at Bangaan PrimarySchool, and thereafter led the inauguration of several LFI facilities(cheese plant, dairy farm 1 and 2 milking parlors, and liquid nitro-gen plant).

- Finally, he visited a provincial grain processing center, a projectof Gov. Khalid Dimaporo, at SND, Lanao del Norte, before flyingback to Manila via Cagayan de Oro.

Abaca gives hope ... (from p9)

Govt eyes release of pest listfor intl market access in 2011The government is planning

to release a specimen-basedpest list of agricultural cropsthat could facilitate the ship-ment of local farm productswithin the year, the Bureau ofPlant Industry (BPI) said.

Wilma R. Cuaterno, chief ofthe BPI’s crop protection divi-sion, said the list of pests thatusually affect Philippines cropsis consistent with the rules ofthe World Trade Organizationon sanitary and phytosanitarymeasures.

“Importing countries of Phil-ippine farm products usually re-quire list of pests that affect orthreaten a particular product.The compendium of pestswould make it easier for busi-ness people to draw up thatlist”, said Cuaterno.

Clarito M. Barron, BPI direc-tor, noted that specimen-basedpest list enables importingcountries to see the list ofpests and diseases that mightaffect their agricultural crops.

Barron said the list can alsoserve as a basis for assessingwhether it is safe to import anagricultural commodity or not.

Aside from making it easierfor local business people to ac-cess markets, Cuaterno saidthe compendium of pests thataffect local plants and crops

SPJA carries a schoolboy over his shoulder, as he leads the distribu-tion of milk to schoolchildren at Bangaan Primary School, in Sul-tan Naga Dimaporo, Lanao del Norte. With him are (from right)Land O’Lakes Philippines country manager Qazi Yawar Naem, Lanaodel Norte 2nd Dist. Rep Fatima Aliah Dimaporo, and former Lanaodel Norte governor and representative Abdullah Dimaporo.

would also be valuable to stu-dents and scientists.

The first batch of agriculturalcrops for inclusion in the listincludes exportable crops suchpapaya, pomelo, durian, ba-nana, dragon fruit, rambutan,mango, okra, lanzones, melon,watermelon, asparagus andmangosteen.

According to Barron, thereare about 3,000 preserve speci-mens of pests of respectivecommodities that are beingmanaged by the Crop Protec-tion Division in relation to theactivity. The whole collection ofpreserved pests and diseases,he said, is more than 35,000.

“The compendium is a pre-liminary effort of the BPI to ad-dress the needs of thecountry’s exporters, plant in-dustries, plant quarantine, ag-ricultural enterprises, and otherstakeholders, including thefarmers,” said Barron.

The BPI noted that the de-velopment of the specimen-based pest list was inspiredand initially assisted by theAustralian Agency for Interna-tional Development (AusAID)three years ago. The attachedagency of the Department ofAgriculture, however, could notprovide the initial amount pro-vided by AusAID. (Business Mirror)

alleviation initiative imple-mented by DA to give poorfarmers and fisherfolk inMindanao agribusiness opportu-nities.

It also helps local governmentunits institutionalize an effectivedelivery of services to communi-ties by capacitating municipalfacilitators and attachedagencies like the Fiber IndustryDevelopment Authority (FIDA).This program has a fund ofUS$123.752 million. US$83.75came from a loan portfolio fromthe World Bank and the rest isthe equity share of the nationalgovernment and LGUs.

MRDP granted KAFAP250,000. Abobol says KAFAused this to procure 2,750tissue-cultured abaca suckersdistributed to the first 11beneficiaries, organic fertilizer,and a mechanical stripper.

“Using our old manualstripper is time-consuming, verylaborious and costly as half ofthe total sale of abaca is paidto the stripper,” Abobol says.That is why KAFA is verygrateful to the financial assis-tance they received.

KAFA is also thankful to FIDAfor training them on pestmanagement, plant care,planting, harvesting,postharvest handling, andprocessing of abaca fiber.

Moreover, “with the help ofFIDA, we now make tinagak,which sells for P250 per kilo,”Abobol says.Tinagak is a continuos thread offine quality, similar-sized fiberformed into small bales thatweigh a kilo each.It takes at least four days tomake one bale oftinagak.(Sherwin Manual)

Page 14: Aggie Trends January 2011

14

Sec. Alcala receives from Dr. William Dar, former DA Secretary andcurrently director general of the Int’l. Crops Research Institute forthe Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), seeds of ‘Asha’ peanut varietydeveloped by ICRISAT, based in India. Alcala thanked Dar for bring-ing over to the Philippines ICRISAT seeds and technologies for thebenefit of small Filipino farmers. It has to date provided five variet-ies each of peanut, pigeonpea (kadyos), and sweet sorghum.

The International Rice Re-search Institute (IRRI) andGrainPro, Inc. signed an agree-ment to promote the adoptionand dissemination of rice storagetechnologies in the Philippines.

Between 15 and 25% of riceharvest is lost due to inefficientand outdated postharvest opera-tions.

The agreement is part of anongoing collaboration betweenIRRI and GrainPro to develop stor-age and other technologies thatreduce postharvest losses.

“The joint agreement allows usto better provide farmers, farm-ers’ groups, processors, andseed producers with cost-effec-tive technologies that help re-duce postharvest losses andmaintain the quality of rice andseeds,” said Martin Gummert,IRRI scientist and head ofpostharvest unit. His group pilotsimproved storage of rice grainsand seeds.

“Working in partnership with theprivate sector allows us to reachend-users in a way we cannot doalone, thus helping enhance foodsecurity and improving livelihoodsfor rice farmers and consumers,”he said.

The non-exclusive agreementwith GrainPro in the Philippineswill hopefully lead to other agree-ments and partnerships in theregion.

GrainPro, Inc. is engaged in thedevelopment, manufacture, andcommercial distribution of airtightstorage systems for rice and

IRRI, GrainPRO join handsto promote rice PH techno

other crops.“We greatly value this new co

operation with IRRI, the world’sforemost institute in improvingand protecting rice,” GrainProPhilippines’ President Tom DeBruin said.

“It will ensure that farmers andconsumers alike will promptlybenefit from the latest researchon rice production and protec-tion.”

IRRI and GrainPro have coop-erated on the development ofsmall-scale airtight storage sys-tems for Asian rice farmers, seedproducers, and the commercialsector since 2002.

Research has shown that air-tight storage reduces storagelosses from insects and otherpests, while maintaining grainquality for at least a year. (IRRI)

West African farmers have suc-ceeded in cutting the use of toxicpesticides, increasing yields andincomes, and diversifying farm-ing systems--as a result of an in-ternational project promoting sus-tainable farming practices.

Around 100,000 farmers inBenin, Burkina Faso, Mali andSenegal are participating in acommunity training programimplemented by the Food and Ag-riculture Organization of theUnited Nations (FAO).

Smallholders are developingand adopting ‘good agriculturalpractices’ through experiments inFarmer Field Schools (FFS).

IPPM program in West Africa makes headwayTo grow healthy crops, IPPM

promotes soil improvement andalternatives to chemical pesti-cides such as the use of benefi-cial insects, adapted varieties,natural pesticides and croppingpractices. Marketing and foodsafety issues are also part of thetraining programme.

”Trends in agriculture over thepast decades in West Africa haveseen an increasing use of highlytoxic pesticides in higher-value,frequently irrigated crops.

There is a general lack of knowl-edge in the region of the nega-tive impacts of pesticides on

the production,economy andhealth of commu-nities and the en-vironment,” saidWill iam Settle,FAO Senior Tech-nical Officer.

”Simple experi-ments in the field,as practised bythe Farmer FieldSchools, haveg i v e nsmallholders themeans to pro-duce in a moreenvironmentallyfriendly way, tosubstantially in-crease yields andearn a better in-come,” Settleadded.

” C a p a c i t ybuilding atcommu-nitylevel is key to thesustainable intensification of food

High value ... (from p4)

egies of government agencies onclimate-change mitigation andadaptation.

“One of the ideas behind Philraiis to jumpstart efforts to developcrops that are suitable for rainfedareas.

The Philippines has almost twomillion hectares of rainfed areaswhere dryland crops can beplanted,” he said.

Delima said the DA-HVCDP issetting aside P20 mill ion tojumpstart the Philrai initiative.

There’s an order from Sec.Alcala to allocate P20M for re-search on dryland crops. Thiscould jumpstart Philrai, he said.

Currently, a draft bill on Philrai’sestablishment has yet to be filedin Congress. (Business Mirror)

production, which will contributeto increased food security andimproved livelihoods in the region,an important step towardsachieving the first MillenniumDevelopment Goal.”

A group of around 25 farmerscoordinated by a trainer preparestwo training plots in their village,one using local conventional farm-ing methods and another plotusing best practices appropriateto the crop and location basedon IPPM, to observe and com-pare results from the two plots.

Over 2 000 trainers comingfrom dozens of local government,private sector and civil societyorganizations have been taughtto support farmers in applyingsustainable farming methods.(FAO)

Sec. Alcala (standing, 5th from left) urges DA agri attaches to continuously promoteexports of both traditional and non-traditionalPhilippine products, during theirnational workshop, at Pueblo Por La Playa, in Pagbilao, Quezon. With him are theagri attaches and analysts--posted in WTO in Geneva, FAO in Rome, EU in Brussels,USA, Middle East, and Japan--along with staffmembers of the DA InternationalRelations Division, headed by Lupino Lazaro (front row, 3rd from left).

Page 15: Aggie Trends January 2011

15January 2011

DA allots ... (from p1) Mindanao LGUs ... (from p2)

Herminia Ramiro (Misamis Oc-cidental) and Arturo Uy(Compostela Valley).

Also present were SecretaryLuwalhati Antonino, chairpersonof the Mindanao DevelopmentAuthority, and seven representa-tives, namely: Jesus EmmanuelParas and Florencio Flores(Bukidnon), Yevgeny VincenteEmano and Peter Unabia(Misamis Oriental), AuroraEnerio-Cerilles (Zamboanga delSur), Jorge Almonte (MisamisOccidental) and MaximoRodriguez, Jr. (Abante Mindanaoparty list).

To date, a total of 709 MRDPinfrastruture projects are of vari-ous stages of implementation,most of which are FMRs, with atotal length of 2,200 kilometers,worth P4.55B.

Other projects include bridges,communcal irrigation and potablewater systems, solar dryers, postharvest and storage facilities,hanging bridges, piers and cul-verts.

Aside from establishing seedbanks, Alcala stressed the im-portance of having strong seedgrowers association in everyprovince, which should producequality seeds.

During the BPI anniversary, healso inducted the new set of of-ficers of the federation rice seedgrowers associations.

They are: Arthurito Batalla, ofCAR; Jean Marie Miranda, Re-gion I; Crispulo Santos, RegionII; Lorenzo Duqueza, Region III;Rodolfo Ploponio, FloritoCrisostomo, Region IV-A; Will-iam Petallo, Region V; RodolfoRorreda, Jr., Region VI; LarryPamugas, Region VII; MaroloAlfaro, Vidal Luna, Region XIII;Nasser Barodi, ARMM.

DA to put up ... (from p5)

Floods damage ... (from p3)

seedling production, integratedcoconut-based farming, coconutproducts processing, and farm-ers’ training and technical sup-port, among many others.

The PCA maintains other re-search centers in Albay, DavaoCiy and Zamboanga City and acoconut seed production centerin South Cotabato.

Congressman Angara ex-pressed his high optimism in thekey role that the APCDC will playin the development of the coco-nut industry in Northern Luzon,citing the various infrastructurethat are already in place makingDinalungan accessible.

Mayor Tito Tubigan expressedhis gratitude and that the peopleof Dinalungan will provide full sup-port to the project, as it wouldelevate the stature of their townas a major player in coconut pro-duction and research, an in pro-viding stable employment to farmworkers and laborers in the lo-cality. (PCA Coconut Media Service)

petitiveness of the country’s ag-riculture and fishery sector, allfor the benefit small Filipino farm-ers, fishers, and their children.

In particular, Sen. Pangilinansaid the COCAFM will monitorhow the DA would pursue its planto achieve rice self-sufficiencyby 2013, and the other commod-ity roadmaps for corn, high valuecrops, livestock and fisheries.

It will also explore alternativefunding for AFMA, formulate the2011 legislative agenda based onthe results of meeting and con-sultations with stakeholders,strengthen the DA’s Young

COCAFM ... (from p3)

ares of new areas; irrigation sys-tems that will be rehabilitated willcreate additional service areas of100,680 hectares; and systemsthat will be restored will provideirrigation to some 28,290 hect-ares

Of the six FAPs, the biggest isthe Agno River Integrated Irriga-tion Project, in Pangasinan, witha total budget this year of P3.2B;followed by the Participatory Irri-gation Dev’t. Project Phase 1,which is implemented nationwide,at P1.06B; and MalitubogMaridagao phase 2(Maguindanao and the NorthCotabato), P550 million. The De-partment of Agriculture (DA) hasextended assistance to seven re-gions affected by the continuousrains in January. (DA-NIA)

More than 100,000 farmers in-sured their crops and livestock:88,843 for rice; 8,595 - corn;1,131 - high value crops; and46,173 head of livestock.

It also insured P1.421-B worthof agricultural equipment and as-sets.

PCIC started last yeat to in-sure fishery and maricultureprojects.

PCIC pays ... (from p1)

PCA inaugurates ... (from p5)

As of January 20, the DA hasdistributed the following farm in-puts and assistance:

·1,100 bags certified seeds·210 kilos of vegetable seeds·3,350 seedlings of various

crops (papaya, saba, latundan,·550 bags organic fertilizers·320 units various farm tools

and implements·18 sets water pumps, engines·Dozens of kilos and bottles

of rodenticides and pesticides,respectively

The concerned DA regional of-fices continuously validate thedamage reports in partnershipwith concerned local governmentunits to ensure that assistancebenefits those who were ad-versely affected.

Sec. Alcala (center) appreciates the ubi products of farmers BasiliaYasay (2nd from right) and Ernest Mendez ( right), of Pres. CarlosGarcia, Bohol at the Bohol Organic Agriculture Summit and 11thUbi Festival in Bohol Cultural Center, Tagbilaran, Bohol. Lookingon are Bohol Governor Edgar Chatto (left) and his wife Maria Pureza.

Sec. Alcala (left) hands over two units of Global Positioning System(GPS) to Mayor Ricarte Padilla of Jose Panganiban, Camarines Norte,to be used by Bantay Dagat volunteers to monitor and apprehendillegal fishermen and poachers. Looking on are Dir. MalcolmSarmiento, Jr. (right) of the DA-Bureau of Fisheries and AquaticResources (BFAR) and Dr. Alma Dickson, chief of the DA-BFARNational Marine Fisheries Development Center.

Farmer’s Program, and initiateother beneficial COCAFM pro-grams.

Meanwhile, the committee intandem with the DA and NationalAgricultural and Fishery Council(NAFC) will spearhead the con-duct of the “Philippine Agricultureand Fisheries 2025,” on Febru-ary 10-11, 2011, at EugenioLopez Center, Antipolo City..

Committee members presentwere: Sen. Sergio Osmena, andReps. Nur G. Jaafar, RolandoAndaya Jr., Imelda QuibranzaDimaporo Lanao Norte, JesusSacdalan, Robert RaymundEstrella, and Agapito Guanlao.

The other members of 14-manCOCAFM are Senators EdgardoAngara, Manuel Lapid, GregorioHonasan, Joker Arroyo and RalphRecto.

Page 16: Aggie Trends January 2011

Agri sector slips by 0.12% in 2010

DA to finalize Halalfood standards

Secretary Proceso J. Alcala discusses the government's plans on theimprovement of the fishery sector with PFDA Gen. Manager PetroniloBuendia, Engr. Augusto Natividad of the National Tuna IndustryCouncil, and other industry leaders during his ocular inspection atthe Navotas Fish Port Complex.

SPJA consults with big fishersTo forge better partnership with

fishery industry leaders, Agricul-ture Secretary Proceso J. Alcalasaid he will also give his full sup-port to commercial fishermen.

“I will personally look into thestatus and current problems ofyour group,” he told commercialfishers during dialogue January13, at the Navotas Fish Port.

He said the DA—through theBureau of Fisheries and AquaticResources (BFAR) and PhilippineFisheries and Development Au-thority (PFDA)—will always con-sult with small and big fishermen,traders, fishing vessel operators,

With renewed support andaggressive lending, the LandBank of the Philippines (LBP)lent a total of P32.3 billion lastyear, benefiting more than800,000 small farmers andfisherfolk.

The amount exceeded theP29.5B released in 2009, saidLBP president Gilda Pico.

The loans were coursedthrough 988 farmers’ andfisherfolk’s cooperatives and356 countryside financial insti-tutions.

Loans for crop production in-creased to P17.9B; and agri-processing loans toppedP1.4B.

Regions with the highestloan releases were CentralLuzon (P7.4B), Cagayan Val-ley (P3.9B), and CentralVisayas (P3.3B).

LBP released a total ofP12.5B for palay production,P700M more than in 2009.(LandBank)

Farmers, fishersavail P32.3-B loans

The Department of Agricultureis doubling efforts to finalize threehalal food standards to boost thecountry’s competitiveness in thehalal world market, estimated at$2.3 trillion.

Agriculture Secretary ProcesoAlcala said entering the lucrativehalal market will considerablycontribute in increasing Philippinefood exports, and revitalize agri-fishery agribusiness enterprisesthat will benefit Filipino farmersand fisherfolk.

It will also pave the way to theestablishment of more halal foodprocessing enterprises that willcreate needed employment op-portunities to thousands of ourcountrymen, Alcala added.

The DA through the Halal FoodIndustry Development Commit-tee, chaired by BFAR 12 Re-gional Director Sani D.Macabalang, is conducting a se-ries of consultations to refine thethree proposed draft standards.

These are: Halal Agricultureand Fishery Products; Code ofHalal Slaughtering Practices forPoultry; and Code of HalalSlaughtering Practices for LargeRuminants.

The first consultation was heldJanuary 24, 2011 at the Bureauof Plant Industry in Quezon City,attended by about 50 Muslimscholars, officials and represen-tatives from the National Com-mission on Muslim Filipinos(NCMF), partner agencies, andthe private sector.

The gains attained by the agri-culture sector in the 4th quarterof 2010 were not enough to over-come the negative effects of theEl Niño phenomenon during thefirst nine months of the year.

Hence, the sector slipped by0.12%, based on estimates bythe DA’s Bureau of AgriculturalStatistics (BAS).

Crop production declined, whilethe livestock, poultry and fisher-ies subsectors managed to postgains.

At current prices, the grossvalue of production amounted toP1.25 trillion, 5.3% higher thanthan last year.

The crops subsector, whichcontributed 45.5% to total pro-duction, dipped by 2.8%.

Production of palay went downby 3%; corn, by 9.3%; coconutand sugarcane, by 0.8% and19.7%, respectively.

Gross value of crop productionwas P666.8B at current prices,5.6% more in 2009.

Livestock production was up by1.5%. The subsector accountedfor 12.7% of total agricultural pro-duction. Hog production grew by1%, while goat, cattle, carabaoand dairy production postedgains, ranging from 1.4% to 9%.

The livestock subsectorgrossed P211B at current prices,7.4% more than in 2009.

The poultry subsector, whichshared 14.9% in total agriculturaloutput, grew by 3.7%. It grossedP152.1B, 4.8% more than lastyear.

Production of chicken andchicken eggs increased by 4%and 5%, respectively.

The fisheries subsector, whichshared 27% to total agriculturaloutput, expanded by 1.7%.

It grossed P221.3B, 2.6%higher than in 2009.

Aquaculture production grewby 2.7%, while municipal fisher-ies was up by 1.6%. Commer-cial fishing declined by 0.5%.

On the average, farmgateprices of all agricultural, livestock,poultry and fishery products in-creased by 5.4%.

Prices of various crops went upby an average of 8.6%; livestockprices, by 5.9%; while prices ofpoultry and fish products, in-creased slightly by 1% and0.9%, respectively.

and other stakeholders in thecrafting and implementation ofpolicies and programs in fisher-ies and aquaculture industry.

“This way, we promote partici-pation and ensure transparency,”Alcala said.

The DA is set to look into over-lapping and interrelated regula-tions implemented by differentgovernment agencies on com-mercial fishing vessel operations.

“We will also include certifica-tion requirements and labor is-sues,” the DA chief added.

The other major concerns thatthe DA through BFAR and PFDAwill look into are:

• Guidelines on fish importation;• Sanitary and phytosanitary

(SPS) requirements of importingcountries;

• Upgrading of fishing ports andpost harvest facilities;

• Implementation of the Na-tional Tuna Management Planand RA 9379 (Handline FishingLaw;

• Negotiation for fishing accessto the high seas as well as withthe Pacific Island states;

• Compliance with the EU regu-lation to prevent, deter and elimi-nate Illegal, Unreported and Un-regulated (IUU) fishing;

• Designation of Philippine per-manent representatives to the Re-gional Fisheries Management Or-ganizations (RFMO);

• Institutionalization of the Na-tional Tuna Industry Council;

• Delineation of municipal wa-ters;

• Provision of credit assistanceand livelihood for fisherfolk; and

• Implementation of sustainablefishery resource managementprograms in preparation for chal-lenges due to climate change.

Three other consultations willbe held in Gen. Santos (Feb. 16),Zamboanga City and Cebu City,both in March.

Macabalang said the three pro-posed standards include specificprovisions for each food productgroup, and address issues on Ge-netically Modified Organisms(GMOs).

“The standards took into ac-count the requirements set byregional and international bodiesto ensure harmonization of thevarious provisions which are im-portant in the recognition of thecountry’s halal export,”Macabalang said.

When finalized, the three Phil-ippine halal code of standardswill be presented to the ASEANTechnical Working Group onHalal Food and the World HalalForum, April 2011, in Malaysia.

Macabalang said once the Phil-ippine halal standards are ap-proved and recognized by thesebodies, the country could theneasily gain access to the worldhalal market.