Aggie Trends February 2011

Vol. XXVI No. 2 A monthly publication of the Department of Agriculture February 2011

Marginal f ishermen andindigenous Dumagats in Aurorawill benefit from a P10-millionfish cage project in Casiguranmariculture park, initiated by theDA-BFAR.

Secretary Proceso J. Alcalaled the inauguration of the fishcage project February 18,highlighted with the ceremonialstocking of bangus fingerlings,

Fish cage project to benefitDumagats, Casiguran fishers

Agriculture Secretary ProcesoJ. Alcala asked the NationalIrrigation Administration (NIA) tospeed up the repair of majorirrigation systems to furtherincrease the country’s palayproduction towards self-sufficiency by 2013.

Farmers, agribusinessmen list smuggling as top concern

(Pls turn to p2)

Farmers and agribusiness-men rank smuggling as one ofthe major concerns that hinderthe growth of the country’sagriculture and fishery sector.

They said the entry of cheapsmuggled farm and f isheryproducts continues unhampered,thus adversely af fecting thelivelihood and incomes of smallfarmers and fisherfolk.

This and other major concernsand problems surfaced during theAgriculture and Fisheries 2025Summit, held February 10-11,2011, in Antipolo City.

It was sponsored jointly by theCongressional OversightCommittee on Agriculture andFisheries Modernization(COCAFM), DA and agri-fisheryindustry stakeholders.

Hence, COCAFM co-chairpersons Senator FrancisPangilinan and Rep. Mark

Alcala orders NIA to hasten irrigation repairs

(Pls turn to p12)

Llandro Mendoza led the mainguests, along with AgrarianReform secretary Virgilio de losReyes, several COCAFMmembers at the House ofRepresentatives, former DAsecretary Senen Bacani, andAgriwatch chair Ernesto Ordonez,and agribusinessmen, andfarmers’ and fisherfolk’s leaders.

On the issue of smuggling,Secretary Alcala said the DA will

A modern integrated fishport andcold storage complex, worthP29.2 million, will rise inMaimbung, Sulu, that will pave to

transforming the coastaltown into a major f ishtrading center in WesternMindanao.

It is funded by theDepartment of Agriculturethrough the PhilippineFisheries DevelopmentAuthority (PFDA), inpartnership with theprovincial government ofSulu and municipalgovernment of Maimbung.

Secretary Proceso J.Alcala led the facility’sgroundbreaking ceremonyFebruary 24, 2011, alongwith Sulu GovernorAbdusakur Tan and hisson Maimbung MayorSamier Tan, newly-appointed PFDA generalmanager Rodolfo Paz,and director MalcolmSarmiento of the DA-Bureau of Fisheries andAquatic Resources(BFAR).

The fishport and coldstorage complex canhandle up to 10 tons of fishdaily, said PFDA GMPaz.

(Pls turn to p2)

P29-M fishport,cold storage to rise

in Sulu town Secretary Proceso J. Alcala (3rd from left) hands over the Agricul-ture and Fisheries 2025 Summit workshop outputs and recom-mendations to Senator Francis Pangilinan, chair of the Senatecommittee on agriculture and co-chair of the Congressional Over-sight Committee on Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization(COCAFM). Spearheaded jointly by the COCAFM, Department ofAgriculture, and agri-fishery industry stakeholders, the Summitattended by 170 participants. Also shown (from left) are Agriwatchchair Ernesto Ordoñez, Agrarian Reform Secretary Virgilio de losReyes, COCAFM co-chair Rep. Mark Llandro Mendoza, and Rep.Robert Raymund Estrella.

He issued the order during theagency’s 2011 ‘commandconference’ attended by NIAregional managers and projectdirectors, led by administratorAntonio S. Nangel at the UpperPampanga River IntegratedIrrigation System (UPRIIS) mainoff ice, in Cabanatuan City,February 17.

To attain 100 per self-sufficiency by end of 2013, theAquino administration aims toproduce over 21 million metrictons (MMT) of palay, equivalentto 13.7 MMT of rice, said Sec.Alcala, a civil engineer byprofession.

A civil engineer by profession,Sec. Alcala also asked the NIAregional managers and projectdirectors to revise their previousirrigation repair estimates andprioritize national irrigationsystems that could immediately

Sec. Alcala (right) harvests bangus atAurora mariculture park, one of theprojects by the DA through the Bureauof Fisheries and Aquatic Resources(BFAR). Joining him are BFAR directorMalcolm Sarmiento (middle), BFARass’t. director Gil Adora (left), andBFAR region 3 director RemediosOngtangco (partly hidden). (Pls turn to p11)

2

EditorialAgarang aksyon, epektibong solusyon

Tama na ang paglalagayng ‘band-aid solutions.’

Dapat gamutin nangtuluyan ang anumang‘sugat’ o suliranin.

Ito ang malakas namensahe ng mga lumahoksa makasaysayang‘Agriculture and FisheriesSummit 2025’ upangmaibsan at malunasan angmga balakid at problema nanagsisilbing sugat atpumipigil sa pag-usbong ngpambansang sektor ngsakahan at pangisdaan.

Masyadong ambisyosokung titingnan ang mgabinalangkas na kaukulanglunas.

Ang tanong ay kung angmga ito ay magagawa.

Ang mahalaga, ani ngkaramihang dumalo, ay maykasunduan na tutukuan angbawat solusyon hanggangito’y maisasakatuparan omaging realidad.

Halimbawa, ang mgairrigation system aykaraniwang ginagawa atnatatapos ng tatlong taon.Ang iba, umaabot hanggangsampung taon, depende sadaloy ng ‘budget.’

Hindi rin maramdamanagad ang epekto ngkaragdagang ani mula sapaggamit ng mataas na uring binhi.

Pagkatapos turuan angmga magsasaka ng mgamakabagong teknolohiya,hindi naman kaagad nilamakakamit ang inaasahangresulta at karagdagang ani.

At higit sa lahat, talamakpa rin ang smuggling--nasiyang kumikitil sa paglagong mga magsasaka atmangingisda.

Ilan lamang ito sa mgaproblema ng sektor, kasamaang pabago-bagong klima o‘climate change.’

Tunay na kumplikado, ‘ikanga, ang mga problema nahinaharap ng bansa upangmuling iangat ang sektor ngsakahan at pangisdaan, atbigyan ng magandangbukas ang mga maliliit namagsasaka at mangingisda.

Ngunit maganda angdinulot ng Summit --nagsama-sama ang lahat ngmga katuwang sapamumuno mismo ninaSenador ‘Kiko’ Pangilinan(Senate agriculture

committee chair), KinatawanMark Llandro Mendoza(House of Representativesagriculture committee chair),Ernesto Ordonez ngAgriWatch (kumakatawansa samahan ng mgamagsasaka, mangingisda atpribadong sektor), at Sec.Procy Alcala.

Sina Sen. Pangilinan atRep. Mendoza rin aynamumuno saCongressional OversightCommittee on Agricultureand Fisheries Modernization(COCAFM).

Ani Sen. Pangilinan:“Kailangang humanap ngmga solusyon namaituturing na ‘out-of-the-box,’ o di-pangkaraniwan athindi pa nasusubukan.”

Ayon naman kay Sec.Procy, isusulong ng hustong DA ang pagsasaayos ngmga irigasyon sa bansaupang makamit angkasapatan sa bigas sa2013.

Higit sa lahat, aniyainatasan siya ni PangulongAquino na maging daanupang manumbalik angtiwala ng mga magsasaka,mangingisda at ngtaumbayan sa pamahalaan.

Ito’y magagawa lamangkung mararamdaman nilaang mga pagbabago sakanayunan -- na bunga ngpaghatid ng kinakailangangayuda at serbisyo tulad ngmakabagong teknolohiya,mataas na uri ng binhi,maayos na irigasyon,kalsada, at post harvestfacilities, at mainam napresyo ng mga produktongagrikultural.

Kaya naman, si Sec.Procy ay abalang nakikipag-ugnayan sa lahat ng sektorsa iba’t-ibang rehiyon upangalamin kung ang mgaprograma ng DA aynararamdaman ng mgamaliliit na magsasaka atmangingisda.

Ang nais niya’y agarangaksyon at epektibongsolusyon.

Kung ang karamiha’ysusunod, marahil hindi nakailangang maghintay pa ng15 taon upang mulingsumikat ang Pilipinas salarangan ng sakahan atpangisdaan.

Writers: Adora D. Rodriguez, Jo Anne Grace B. Pera, Arlhene S. Carro, Bethzaida Bustamante, Mc. Bien Saint Garcia, Jay Ilagan, Catherine Nanta, Adam BorjaContributors: DA-RFU Info Officers, Public Info Officers and Staff of DA

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. ReyesAssociate Editors: Karenina Salazar & Cheryl C. Suarez

Bureaus, Attached Agencies & Corporations, Foreign-Assisted ProjectsPhotographers: Jose Lucas, Alan Jay Jacalan, & Kathrino ResurreccionLay-out Artist: Bethzaida BustamantePrinting & Circulation: Teresita Abejar & PCES Staff

Fish cage project ... (from p1)

and turnover of initial batch offish cages to the beneficiaries.

A total of 32 fish cages will beinstalled by the DA-BFAR at theCasiguran mariculture park.

The fish cage features a newdesign, as designed bySecretary Alcala himself, wherebangus and sea cucumber willbe raised at the same time.

Bangus will be raised in thetop cage, while the seacucumber will be at the bottom,to act as ‘bio-filters’ or eaters ofsurplus feed and wastes ofbangus. The design is aptlycalled ‘Alcala fish cage model.’

BFAR Dir. Sarmiento saideach fish cage can produce atleast four tons (4,000 kilos) ofbangus every three months. Ata farmgate price of P90 per kilo,the benef iciaries will grossP360,000 per crop.

“We want the small fishermenand the Dumagats to directlybenef it f rom this f ish cagelivelihood project,” said Sec.Alcala.

“With this project, we hope tochange and transform their livesfor the better.

“We will train them to stockand harvest bangus on a rotationbasis, at least every two weeks,so they will earn a steadyincome year-round. We willassist them up to the marketingstage,” he added.

BFAR Dir. Sarmiento saidthey will also put up a mini iceplant with a three-ton capacity.It will supply the icerequirements of fisherfolk andbuyers to keep the fish freshduring transport to markets inAurora province and nearbyprovinces such as Quirino,Nueva Ecija and Nueva Vizcaya.

In addition, Sec. Alcala saidthe DA will provide a refrigeratedtruck courtesy of the PhilippineCenter for PostharvestDevelopment and Mechan-ization (PhilMech).

Farmers ... (from p1)

work closely with the Bureau ofCustoms to firmly and decisivelyaddress the lingering problem.

The Summit participants alsoasked that the Local GovernmentCode and local ordinances bereviewed and revised to makethem conducive in attractingagriculture, fishery, agribusinessand food processing enterprises.

Government should alsoimplement innovative andsustainable schemes to makecredit accessible and affordableto small farmers and fisherfolk,and small and medium agri-fishery enterprises.

The participants also askedlegislators and local officials tocraft and enforce favorable landuse and zoning laws andordinances to encourageinvestments in the agricultureand fishery sector.

Government and the privatesector should invest more inputting up post harvest facilitiessuch as dryers, cold storagefacilities, grains terminals, andtrading posts, among others.

In all, the participantsidentified five major goals thatboth government and the privateshould achieve by the year 2025,namely: food security and selfsuff iciency, food safety andquality, increased jobs,increased incomes, and aneducated and trained farming andfishing sector.

Sec. Alcala said the DA andCOCAFM, along with thedesignated Summit leaders, willmeet again after six months toevaluate the progress ofimplementation of ‘doable’ short-term initiatives.

For his part, SenatorPangilinan said the COCAFMwill also convene a one-dayworkshop aimed at tracking therecommendations and proposalsduring the Summit.

February 2011 3

P2.25-B grains postharvestfacilities eyed in Isabela

(Pls turn to p11)

Farmers’ registry system is onTo effectively plan, design

and monitor agricultural sup-port services, the Departmentof Agriculture is launching theNational Farmers’ RegistrySystem (NFRS) in collabora-tion with the local governmentunits.

It will be piloted in Quezon,Leyte and Bukidnon.

Duting its launch in Quezon,Agriculture Sectary Proceso J.Alcala urged local executives,provincial and municipal agri-culturists, and other agri stake-holders to take active part inthe program as it seeks to es-tablish a reliable database offarmers, fishers, and farmlandsand fishing grounds.

“I believe this will benefit allof us and so I am encouragingeveryone to register,” Alcalasaid.

“Thru this voluntary system,farmers will be given highestpriority in the blueprinting of pro-grams and services by DA andother government agencies,”

The Departments of Agriculture(DA), Agrarian Reform (DAR),and Environment and NaturalResources (DENR), and the pro-vincial government of Isabelasigned an agreement to attractFilipino and foreign firms to in-vest in post-harvest facilities ini-tially estimated at P2.25 billionthat would serve 30,000 hectaresplanted to rice and corn in theprovince.

The agreement was forgedFebruary 23, in Cauayan City dur-ing the launch of the an agro-enterpise cluster in Isabela, aspart the National ConvergenceInitiative (NCI) among the DA,DAR and DENR, in partnershipwith concerned provincial andlocal governments.

Executive Secretary PaquitoS. Ochoa Jr. served as mainguest and speaker.

Agriculture Secretary ProcesoAlcala said the cost of post har-vest facilities (PHF)—rangingfrom mechanical dryers to grainstorage facilities—is estimatedat P75,000 per hectare, for a to-tal of 2.25 billion.

Said investments when real-ized will further solidify the posi-tion of Isabela as the country’smajor grains bowl, and thus play

a key role in government’s goalto attain food security, particularlyrice self-sufficiency by 2013.

As agreed upon, the DA, DAR,DENR, and the provincial govern-ment of Isabela will facilitate theflow of investments by offering taxholidays, duty-free importation ofpost-harvest equipment, and eas-ing up on local regulations andtaxes.

For his part, Isabela GovernorFaustino G. Dy III said they planto acquire 100 4-wheel tractors todevelop 500 hectares of farm-lands a day. The province alsoaims to buy dozens of portablemechanical dryers to serve the

Agriculture secretary ProcesoJ. Alcala has directed all DAofficials to implement neededpolicies and programs to mitigatethe adverse effects of climatechange.

In a recent memo, he said suchclimate change program willcomplement current efforts of theAquino administration to attainrice self-sufficiency, food securityand water sufficiency--as it will

DA to implement climate change programaddress the pressures ofextreme weather conditionsaffecting the agriculture andfishery sector.

Under the memo several DAunits and agencies are givenspecif ic tasks andresponsibilities.

To ensure coherence in theimplementation of DA climatechange policies and programs, aClimate Change Program Officewill be created at the office of theUndersecretary for Policy andPlanning.

To start with, Sec. Alcala saidthe DA needs to institutionalizethe Climate Information Systemfor Agriculture and Fisheries,spearheaded led by itsInformation Technology Center forAgriculture and Fisheries(ITCAF).

It is tasked to produce climatechange vulnerability mapsoverlaid on Strategic Agricultureand Fisheries Development Zones(SAFDZs).

Further, the Bureau of Soils andWater Management (BSWM) istasked to optimize the use ofagrometeorology stations inhighly vulnerable areas togenerate location-specif icweather projections that willserve as early warning system forlocal farming

and fishing communities.Such weather projections will

be very useful in what crop toplants and needed culturalmanagement practices, andmake the most of from availablefarm inputs such as seeds, andother farm chores such as

irrigation scheduling, and watermanagement for aquaculture,including insurance riskassessment.

The DA’s Field OperationsService (FOS) is also tasked toprovide adaptation models forclimate change-resilientirrigation system andinfrastructure, weather-basedi n s u r a n c e / r i s k - t r a n s f e rmechanism, and extensionsystems.

The DA-FOS will pursue thistask under a project called, “ThePhilippines: Climate ChangeAdaptation Project (PhilCCAPI),” funded by the GlobalEnvironment Facility Trust Fundof World Bank (GEF-WB).

Meanwhile, the NationalIrrigation Administration (NIA)and BSWM will assess thevulnerability of national irrigationsystems and small dams ifthese could withstand heavyrains and floodings, or if theycould still deliver water duringprolonged dry spell.

The specif ic tasks ofconcerned DA agencies/bureaus are:

• Agricultural Credit PolicyCouncil - look for resources anddevelop innovative financingschemes for wider adoption ofclimate change adaptationmeasures;

• Phil. Crop Insurance Corp.(PCIC) - develop a weather-based insurance system, andexpand protection to smallfarmers and fisherfolk;

• Agricultural Training Institute- conduct information-education-

Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa, Jr. (2nd from right) presidesover the launch of an agro-enterpise cluster in Isabela, as part ofthe National Convergence Initiative (NCI) among the DA, DARand DENR, in partnership with the provincial government. Withhim are Gov. Faustino Dy (right), Representatives Rodolfo AlbanoJr. (left) and Ana Cristina Go (2nd from left), and DA Sec. ProcesoAlcala (standing, in green shirt).

Alcala said.This will include a medium

and long-term public investmentprogram which in line with DA’s“farm-to-table”.

“Also, NFRS can be used inassessing the extent of dam-age in agriculture and fisheriesafter a typhoon or drought, mak-ing it easier for partner agen-cies to assess what assistanceto provide,” he added.

The NFRS methodology is acommunity-based approachwhich entails data gathering thruinterviews. As such, an informa-tion campaign on its implemen-tation will be spearheaded byDA and the LGUs.

The farmers registry systemwill be piloted in Quezon, Leyteand Bukidnon--as these threeprovinces are considered mostvulnerable to floods and land-slides, and drought due to ElNiño by the Nat’l. Disaster Co-ordinating Council, the Depart-ment of Environment and Natu-ral Resources and the DA.

(Pls turn to p11)

4

Faced with more than 600farmers and their “hundred ques-tions,” Agriculture SecretaryProceso Alcala spoke, interactedand lunched with them, leaving aserious appeal of getting theirmuch-needed help to meet thecountry’s rice-sufficiency targetby 2013.

“We want to correct the wrongimpression that many peoplefrom various countries studied inthe Philippines and they beat us.

“This time, when you go backto your provinces, help us in ex-plaining that these countries maybe harvesting more because theyhave better irrigation system, butin terms of the skills of farmers,we beat them,” Alcala said in Fili-pino at the International Rice Re-search Institute’s (IRRI) Farmers’Day, February 28, 2011.

This was echoed by IRRI direc-tor general Dr. Robert Zeigler, whosaid: “In the 1960s, Thailand wasmore productive than the Philip-pines. Today, the country is farmore productive than Thailand.The Philippines is the leader inrice production.”

He added that Filipino farmersare among the most productivefarmers in the world.

Banking on these skills andriding on the high trust rating ofthe Aquino administration, Alcala

Alcala woos S. Luzon farmersat IRRI farmers’ day

DA, DepEd to implement‘Gulayan sa Paaralan’

Sec. Alcala (right) appreciates a new high-yielding rice varietydeveloped by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) atLos Banos, Laguna, in celebration of the agency’s ‘Araw ngMagsasaka,’ Feb. 28, attended by 600 Southern Tagalog farmers.With him are farmer-leaders and IRRI Director General RobertZeigler (partly hidden).

The Department of Agriculturein tandem with the Departmentof Education will implement anational vegetable program in-volving public schools, simplycalled “Gulayan sa Paaralan.”

Agriculture Secretary ProcesoJ. Alcala said this part of Presi-dent Aquino’s hunger mitigationand poverty alleviation efforts, andhelp attain food self-relianceamong households.

Gulayan sa Paaralan will beimplemented in all public elemen-tary and secondary schools na-tionwide, and targets to establish42,076 vegetable gardens by2016.

Sec. Alcala recently signed theprogram’s implementing guide-lines (DA Administrative OrderNo. 05, Series of 2011).

Gulayan sa Paaralan is a com-ponent of the DA’s ProgramangAgrikulturang Pilipino (Agri-Pinoy) framework.

It is envisioned that the veg-etable gardens will serve assource of additional food forschoolchildren and their families.

More importantly, the initiativeaims to raise awareness on thehealth and nutritional benefits ofvegetables.

The program also aims to en-courage families with vacant lotsto plant vegetables as source ofadditional income.

Local government units(LGUs) through their respectivebarangays may also establishcommunity vegetable gardens.

Under the program, the DA-Regional Field Units will provideseeds of preferred and indig-enous vegetables, planting ma-terials of rootcrops such assweet potato and cassava, andtechnical assistance.

Concerned LGUs--in partner-ship with the DA-RFUs, DA-Ag-ricultural Training Institute (ATI),NGOs and POs--will coordinatewith the DepEd in the conductof training among schoolchildrenand teachers alike.

These will cover topics likeproper way of growing veg-etables, organic fertilizer produc-tion, pest and disease manage-ment, vegetable seed produc-tion, and container/backyard gar-dening, among others.

Local agriculture technicianswill provide technical assistanceespecially in raising vegetables.They are also tasked to regu-larly monitor the vegetable gar-dens.

To sustain the program andgenerate interest, a competitionon “Best School Gardens” willbe launched by school districts.

Contest guidelines will becrafted by the DepEd in partner-ship with the Congressional Rep-resentatives and/or Governors.

Prizes or incentives—such asschool buildings, computers,potable water systems, gardentools and implements—will besolicited from the Congressmenand local chief executives.

Participating schools shouldhave a vacant lot of at least 200square meters.

For schools without vacantlots, they could adopt containergardening technology.

The school will be responsiblein the establishment and main-tenance of the vegetable gar-dens, as well as the productionof seeds for the next cropping.

A Gulayan sa Paaralan tech-nical working group (TWG) at theregional, provincial and munici-pal levels will be formed, com-posed of representatives fromthe DA-RFU, DepEd, concernedLGUs and other stakeholders.

The TWG will regularly moni-tor the school gardens, and rec-ommend strategies to further en-hance the vegetable program.

noted that the implementation ofthe Philippines Rice Self-Suffi-ciency Plan is at the right time,as he proposed three interven-tions to attain the target of in-creasing palay and rice produc-tion, diversify and produce morestaple food, and efficiently man-age rice consumption.

On increasing palay produc-tion, Alcala said priority will begiven to constructing and repair-ing irrigation systems that willirrigate larger areas at the cheap-est cost.

He said the DA will phase outsubsidy on seeds and fertiliz-ers, and instead establish seedbank in all provinces, wherefarmers can go for quality seeds.

Through the public-privatepartnership (PPP) program,Alcala said postharvest facilitieswill be improved to preventgrains wastage and losses.

While the country’s riceproduiction has continuously in-crease through the years, thepopulation growth rate also con-tinues to go up.

Alcala also encouraged farmers to continue planting upland-rice varieties that may be ex-ported to Europe and America.

About 600 farmers fromCalabarzon—Cavite, Laguna,Batangas, Rizal and Quezon—

and Oriental and OccidentalMindoro converged at IRRI tolearn the latest and best-perform-ing rice varieties developed by theinstitute.

Divided in groups, they weretoured inside IRRI in differentsites.

IRRI experts showcased theirnewly-released varieties such asTubigan 18, also known asRc222 or IRRI 154 that was re-leased in 2010 with the supportof the Department of Agricultureand PhilRice.

In national experimental trials,Tubigan 18 has produced up to10 tons per hectare, with an av-erage 6 tons per hectare.

IRRI said it is one of the bestperformers in rainfed areas, es-pecially during wet season, mak-ing it widely suitable for all rice-growing areas in the country.

To date, 88 rice varieties devel-oped by IRRI have been releasedin the country. (Business Mirror)

5February 2011

Some 200 Nueva Ecija farm-ers from 10 cooperatives recentlyreceived dairy carabaos from theDA through the DA-PhilippineCarabao Center (PCC).

Secretary Proceso Alcala gavetheir respective certificate of en-titlement in simple ceremonies,February 17, at Tayabo, San JoseCity.

The farmers are from the townsof Talavera, Gen. Natividad,Aliaga, Llanera, Lupao, Rizal andSan Jose City.

Said batch of dairy carabaosis part of the 2,000 head that willbe distributed by the DA-PCCunder its the national carabao ge-netic improvement program.

Last year, 734 purebred buffa-loes were given to selected farm-ers, also in Nueva Ecija.

Another 740 are to be en-trusted to qualified farmers inother provinces.

Sec. Alcala said with the dairybuffaloes, more small farmers willearn additional income and at thesame provide their families andother households with fresh nu-tritious milk.

“We do not end here but this isjust a beautiful beginning of our

Agriculture Secretary ProcesoJ. Alcala asked officials and staffof the Philippine Rice ResearchInstitute (PhilRice) to help attaingovernment’s goal of rice self-sufficiency by 2013.

“It is possible when we worktogether and find ways to makeit happen. And thanks to thecontinuing efforts of PhilRice,”said Sec. Alcala in Filipino,during his February 17 visit at theagency’s central experimentstation, Science City of Muñoz,Nueva Ecija,

In particular, the DA chiefcommended the skills and abilityof the Institute’s researchers inproducing breeder andfoundation rice seeds, which aredistributed nationwide to riceseed growers for propagation anddistribution to farmers.

He also lauded PhilRiceengineers for developinginnovative farm technologies andmachines such as controlledirrigation, windmill pumpirrigation system, rice huskgassif ier engine system,carbonizer-pump system, andpost-harvest storage systems.

During a tour, he also met with

Farmers get dairy carabaos from DA-PCC

Agri chief asks PhilRiceto help attain rice sufficiency

the agency’s ‘Rice Self-Sufficiency Officers’ (RSOs).After graduation in April 2011, theywill be deployed to different rice-producing provinces.

The agency is continuouslydeveloping technologies andstrategies to increase the averagepalay harvests in rainfed andupland areas, and other adverseenvironments.

In 2012, PhilRice is expectedto release two inbred direct-wet-seeded rice varieties for irrigatedlowland areas with a potentialyield of 10 tons per hectare.

Moreover, two hybrid varietieswith potential yield of at least 12tons per hectare will be releasedbetween 2012 and 2014.

He instructed PhilRice torapidly produce NSIC Rc222--ahigh-yielding variety for irrigatedand rainfed areas--for distributionto seed growers and farmersnationwide,.

He also urged the agency topromote and commercialize--inpartnerhsip with local farmmachine manufacturers--itsseveral developed farmequipment and machines.

These a mechanical rice

Sec. Alcala (right) lis-tens intently as Direc-tor Libertado Cruz ofthe DA-Phil. CarabaoCenter briefs him onthe capacity and thevarious productschurned out by theagency’s milk anddairy processing facil-ity (inset), in Muñoz,Nueva Ecija.

Sec. Alcala (right) holds a blue crab being propagated by the DA-BFAR at its newly-established blue crab hatchery in Baler, Aurora,which can produce up to 1 million crablets a month for distributionto small fishermen and the rest will be stocked in municipal watersfor the benefit marginal fisherfolk in Aurora. Sec. Alcala said theDA-BFAR will put up similar hatcheries in coastal areas whereblue crab are endemic to provide needed livelihood and additionalincome to small fisherfolk and their families. Also shown (from left)are Wilfredo Cruz, BFAR Aurora station chief and blue crab projectleader, BFAR director Malcolm Sarmiento, Jr., BFAR-MCS grouphead Dr. Alma Dickson, and BFAR Region 3 director RemediosOngtangco.

collective efforts to prepare fora brighter future for our children,”Sec. Alcala said, as he assuredfarmers of continued support andassistance of the DA through thePCC.

“It is in empowering our small-holder farmers and fishers thatwe will see a more progressivecountryside and nationaleconomy,” he noted.

Before the turn-over cer-emony, Sec. Alcala toured thePCC facilities, including the Na-tional Gene Pool for riverine buf-faloes.

He was ushered in and briefedalong the way by PCC officials,led by Director Dr. LibertadoCruz. Sec. Alcala witnessed ac-tual demonstrations of machine-milking, artificial insemination,and ovum pick-up for carabaos.

As a former Congressman(2nd District, Quezon), he en-couraged incumbent Nueva Ecijalegislators to help fund carabaomilk-feeding and dairy projectsto increase farmers’ incomesand provide livelihoodopportunites in their respectiveconstituencies.

transplanter, combine harvester,reversible airf low dryer, andelectronic grain color sorter.

He likewise urged the agency

to speed up the transfer oftechnologies to small farmers,who should benefit most from itsresearch outputs. (DA-PhilRice)

6

Onions make this farmer shed tears

They say that onions makeyou cry.

But the tears in the eyes ofonion farmer Quirino Franciscoof Barangay Vega, Bongagon,Nueva Ecija, are not due to thestinging sensation caused bythe amino acid sulfoxides thatonions emit.

Nor are they caused by afeeling of deep sadness.

Rather, Mang Quirino’s tearsare tears of joy.

This month, he expects toharvest up to 28,000 kilos ofhybrid red onions and 42,000kilos of yellow hybrid onionsfrom his two-hectare farm,ahead of other growers.

With prices soaring to P100per kilo for red and P60 per kilofor yellow varieties, MangQuirino will earn millions.

As hybrid onions matureearlier than traditional varieties,farmers—who like Mang Quirinoplanted in November last year—will start harvesting by the endof February onto March andApril, taking advantage of themaximum peak prices.

The current bright prospectsof onion farmers in Bongabonand other towns in Nueva Ecijaare a result of several initiativesimplemented by the Depart-ment of Agriculture under theleadership of SecretaryProceso J. Alcala.

For one, the DA has re-stricted the entry of importedonions, specifically fromChina, which bring down thedemand for local produce.

In December 2010, Sec.Alcala stood firm and did notgive in to the clamor of tradersto issue a permit.

Had he done so, importedonions would have flooded themarkets, bringing down theprices of those locally-pro-duced, and adversely affectedonce again the livelihood ofthousands of farmers depend-ing on the commodity.

Bureau of Plant Industry(BPI) assistant director andconcurrent High Value CropsDevelopment Program(HVCDP) director DanteDelima applauds Alcala for thismove.

“It gave the industry a bigpush,” he said.

For some time now, nopermits have been issued tothe delight of the Union ofOnion Growers and Traders(UGAT), a federation of 5,000onion growers. It has beenvigilant in campaigning againstthe illegal entry and smugglingof onions.

Aside from this, the DA isfocusing on the development ofparticipatory productiontechnology and appropriate

storage techniques in order tomaximize areas in the differentregions suitable for onionproduction and attain suffi-ciency and maximize exportpotential in the near future.

Dubbed as the onion capitalof the Philippines, Nueva Ecijaprovides 57 percent of thecountry’s total production, withBongabon as the biggestcontributor, with a 3,000-hectare production area.

The government has beencontinuously providing interven-tions—helping close to 2,500onion growers of Nueva Ecija.

Last November 2010, the DAthrough the HVCDP hasprovided P15-million worth ofhybrid onion seeds and P4.5-million worth of Red Creole andYellow Granex varieties toBongabon farmers.

On top of this, the DA alsoawarded a total of P500,000-worth of seeds to onion growersoutside of Bongabon.

For 2011, the HVCDP isalloting P25 million to fundinititiaves and programs onspice crops, including onions.

Meanwhile, a three-story coldstorage warehouse will soonrise in Bongabon to enablefarmers store their produce ninemonths after harvest, thusgiving them ample time to waitfor better prices.

According to municipalagriculturist Lucy Ceña, thefacility can hold 70,000 kilos ofonions.

“We’re still polishing details,and we’re positive that thisproject, which aims to serveboth individual farmers andcooperatives, will pushthrough,” Ceña said.

The DA has also committedto provide more assistance toonion farmers—not only inBongabon and other towns inNueva Ecija, but in Visayasand Mindanao—to includeprovision of new productiontechniques and storagefacilities to enable them toproduce onions year-round,and thus stabilize supply andprices.

Other concerned DA agen-cies--like the BPI, Bureau ofAgricultural Research, Agricul-tural Training Institute, and thePhilippine Center forPostharvest Development andMechanization--are likewise ontop of their game to ensure thesustainable growth anddevelopment of the country’sonion industry.

So why do onions make youcry?

Evidently for Mang Quirino, itis because of joy, pure, purejoy.

By Adora Dolores Rodriguez

Bongabon farmer QuirinoFrancisco shows off part of hiswhite onion harvest, while otherfarmers (at right) are still busytending their onion crop in thefield.

7February 2011

The country’s onion industryis on the path towards recoveryand self-sufficiency, as farm-ers, traders and governmentrecently joined hands to form acoordinating body that willchart a roadmap and sustainthe industry’s current brightprospects.

This was the favorablescenario during an onionindustry stakeholders’ forumand workshop attended byabout 100 farmers, traders andinput suppliers, February 22,2011, at the DA main office inQuezon City.

Initiated by AgricultureSecretary Proceso J. Alcala,the one-day meeting wasconvened to gather first-handinformation on the currentsituation of the onion industry,identify needed interventionsand strategies to improve andyear-round production, andthus stabilize prices, and moreimportantly ensure farmersreasonable profit.

The meeting was presided onbehalf of Sec. Alcala by DAassistant secretary RomeoRecide and Director DanteDelima, national coordinator ofthe DA-High Value CropsDevelopment Program(HVCDP).

The onion industry coordinat-ing body is composed of about24 leaders of onion farmers’associatons in Nueva Ecija,Nueva Vizcaya,Occidental

DA, farmers, other stakeholders joinhands to sustain onion industry

Mindoro, Ilocos Norte, andIlocos Sur, vegetable traders,seeds and farm inputs suppli-ers, municipal agricultureofficers, DA-HVCDP Luzonregional coordinators.

Dir. Delima said the immedi-ate concern of Secretary Alcalais to come up with strategies toproduce enough onions duringoff-season in Central Luzon,particularly in Nueva Ecija.

Onion supply is short anddemand is high in the monthsof November, December andJanuary.

During the meeting, farmerssaid off-season production couldcome from Occidental Mindoro,Isabela, and as far as GeneralSantos City in Mindanao.

Delima said in general thecountry lacks 70,000 to 80,000tons of onions a year.

“This is the challenge that wehave to surmount,” he said.

To overcome this projectedshortage, farmers in otherregions should plant 500 to 700hectares from March to July,which could be harvested duringthe off-season months ofNovember to January.

Another strategy is encour-age farmers to plant onionsduring the off-season under ‘rainshelters’ and make use ofbulblets to shorten the traditonalgrowing period and thus harvestearlier.

Delima said by May this year,the country would expect a

Hundreds of Bongabon onion farmers (foreground) warmly ap-plaud Sec. (top photo, left) for his timely and valuable support andassistance that paved the way to an early and bumber harvest ofonions, making most of them millionaires .

minimum surplus of 40,000tons, which can be stored tomeet the demand for the nexttwo months, or until August.

He said the DA has allottedP25 million to fund programs onspices including onions, ofwhich P18 million has beendownloaded to various regions.

Delima said other DA agen-cies will provide their respectivesupport to revitalize thecountry’s onion industry. Theseinclude the:

• Bureau of AgriculturalResearch and Bureau of PlantIndustry (BPI). They willestablish techno-demo farms to

DA officials, led by Ass’t. Sec. Romeo Recide (2nd from right, topphoto) and HVCDP Dir. Dante Delima (right, top photo) presideover the onion industry stakeholders meeting, at DA main office.Also shown are BPI Director Clarito Barron, BAR DirectorNicomedes Eleazar, and National Onion Growers CooperativeMarketing Association President Dulce Gozon

showcase new technologies toonion farmers in Regions 1, 2,3 and 4B (MiMaRoPa);

• Agricultural TrainingInstitute will conduct neededtraining for farmers andagricultural technicians; andthe

• Philippine Center forPostharvest Development andMechanization will provideneeded post harvest and coldstorage facilities, especially inOccidental Mindoro.

Finally, onion farmersclamor that the DA through theBPI limits the issuance ofpermit to import onions.

The Department of Agriculturethrough its High Value CropsDevelopment Program (HVCDP)is conducting regionalworkshops and consultations toidentify and promote prioritycrops.

The regional consultationswill pave the way to crafting therespective commodity roadmapfor each high value crop,according to Director DanteDelima, HVCDP NationalProgram Coordinator.

He said the two-day planningworkshops, which started inFebruary and will end April,covering all regions, will identifythe top three priority cropsmost suitable in each region.

Workshop participants--composed of farmers,entrepreneurs, processors andtraders, industry associations,LGUs, and DA officials--will alsoidentify and address major

DA conducts HVCDP regional workshopsissues and concerns, identifyexisting service institutionsand support being provided,and recommend neededinterventions to maximizeproduction, processing andmarketing--all to increasefarmers’ incomes.

Delima said the workshopsalso aim to build strongcoordination and partnershipsamong the DA regional offices,bureaus and attachedagencies, vegetable and fruitfarmers, entrepreneurs andprocessors, LGUs, NGOs,and other industrystakeholders.

For its part, the DA throughthe HVCDP and concernedbureaus and agencies willprovide appropriate technical,postharvest and marketingsupport services, and facilitateand promote access to localand international markets.

Tramline cuts transportof veggies to just 3 mins!

8

The Department of Agriculturethrough the Bureau of AgriculturalResearch (DA-BAR), in partner-ship with the International RiceResearch Institute (IRRI), is of-fering a scholarship program toproduce a new generation of Fili-pino rice scientists and extensionworkers.

In a report to Agriculture Sec.Proceso J. Alcala, Dr.Carmencita V. Kagaoan, head ofBAR Institutional Dev’t. Div., saidthe scholarship program aims toimprove the capacity of Philippineacademic and local governmentinstitutions in rice science anddevelopment.

It is called ‘2011 Global RiceScience Scholarships’ or DA-BAR and IRRI Training Scholar-ships.

It covers an internship and anon-the-job training (OJT) at IRRI.

Interested students from stateuniversities and colleges (SUCs)

DA-BAR, IRRI to train new ‘breed’of ‘Pinoy’ rice experts, workers

KOICA Philippines resident representative Kim Jinoh (4th fromleft) and Davao del Sur Governor Douglas Cagas (3rd from left)lead the signing of documents during the groundbreaking ceremonyof the Matanao rice processing center. Joining them (from left) are:DA Region 11 dir. Carlos Mendoza, DA-NABCOR vice chair Atty.Emerson Palad, DA-NABCOR President Allan Javellana, andPhilMech dir. Ricardo Cachuela.

Sec. Alcala (2nd from right) receives vegetables transported throughthe newly-installed tramline from Sta. Rita Barangay KagawadEdgardo Serna of La Paz, Zamboanga City, Feb. 25, 2011. Lookingon are DA Region 9 Dir. Oscar Parawan, DA-PhilMech officials,and La Paz farmers and local officials.

DA, KOICA to put up P196-M rice facility in Davao SurA modern rice processing cen-

ter (RPC) will soon rise inMatanao, Davao del Sur, to ben-efit thousands of farmers andruralfolk in terms of increasedincomes, ensured supply ofquality rice at resonable prices.

The facility, worth P196.36 mil-lion, is funded jointly by the Ko-rean International CooperationAgency (KOICA), Department ofAgriculture (DA) through thePhilippine Center forPostharvest Development andMechanization (PhilMech), andProvincial government of Davaodel Sur.

When the facility is com-pleted, farmers need only to

There is indeed a big differencebetween 12 hours and three min-utes.

Through the years, some 80vegetable farmers in this uplandbarangay—970 meters abovesea level, overlooking scenicZamboanga City—have beenpainstakingly hauling their har-vest to the nearest road, takingthem half a day, or 12 hours, totraverse a 370-meter distance.

Last February 25, 2011, saidpainstaking travel time was re-duced to just three minutes via a“tramline.”

It is simply a steel cable sys-tem with a cage that can carryup to 350 kilos of various veg-etables. In La Paz, farmers pro-duce such crops as cabbage,Chinese pechay, carrots, banana(latundan), and tomato.

It was inaugurated by Agricul-ture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala,at Sitio Sta. Rita, to the appre-ciation of some hundred farmer-beneficiaries and local officials.

He said on top of greatly re-ducing transport time, farmerslikewise maintain the freshnessand quality of the vegetables, andmore importantly save up to P2per kilo in hauling costs, for a totalof P700 per trip, which they usedto pay manual haulers.

The Sta. Rita tramline was putup by the Department of Agricul-ture through the Philippine Cen-ter for Postharvest Developmentand Mechanization (PhilMech),at a cost of P1.6 million.

A similar tramline at SitioFortunato was also completed bythe DA-PhilMech, serving 25hectares planted to semi-temper-

ate vegetables and benefitting 75farm households.

La Paz Barangay KagawadEdgardo Serna thanked Secre-tary Alcala, PhilMech officialsled by Director Ricardo Cachuelaand Zamboanga Rep. Ma. IsabelClimaco-Salazar, for the twotramlines.

Alcala said the tramlines willencourage farmers to developmore areas into vegetable farms,and thus provide them sustainedsource of income.

Meanwhile, he askedPhilMech to modify the designof the cage to accommodate atleast two persons, which couldbe very useful in times of emer-gencies or illnesses.

The tramline will be operatedby the La Paz Farmers’ Ass’n.which will collect a minimal feeto maintain the tramline.

bring their f reshly harvestedpalay, and avail of the efficient andaffordable drying, milling, and pro-cessing facilities, said PhilMechdirector Ricardo Cachuela.

The RPC will also have stor-age rooms for both dried palayand milled rice.

For his part, DA Davao regiondirector Carlos Mendoza said the

facility will benef it 8,000 to10,000 farmers in Davao del Sur,and reduce post harvest losesof up to 23%, equivalent to twomillion metric tons annually.

The RPC is one of the fourfacilities funded by KOICA. Thethree other are in Sta. Barbara,Pangasinan; Pilar, Bohol; andPototan, Iloilo. (DA-RAFID 11)

may apply for the internship,while the OJT is open to rice sci-entists and extension workers,and SUC instructors and profes-sors.

“This is a good opportunity forqualified applicants as they willbe supervised by IRRI scien-tists,” Kagaoan said.

The OJT ranges from twoweeks to three months, depend-ing on particular research topic.

The DA-BAR-IRRI scholarshipcovers a round trip airfare to/fromManila (if applicable); monthlystipend to cover lodging, laun-dry and food expenses; medi-cal and accident insurance; lo-cal travel, if needed; computerand network access; and re-search support.

Those interested may applyon before 31 March 2011, at DA-BAR, tels. 9288505 loc 2111.(Rita T. dela Cruz, DA-BAR)

9February 2011

Residents of Sulop town inDavao del Sur will no longer travelto neighboring towns to buy rice.

This cropping season, they willbuy rice from within, thanks tothe recently-completed P10.6-million irrigation system, the firstin Sulop, that serves some 100hectares.

The Department of Agricultureand the provincial government ofDavao del Sur recently turnedover the irrigation project to theSulop Irrigators Ass’n. Inc. (SIAI),with 35 farmer-members.

Fernando A. Cadiansa, Sulopmunicipal information officer,said the Sulop CommunalIrrigation Project (SCIP) atBarangay Talas was constructedthrough the DA’s Mindanao RuralDevelopment Program (DA-MRDP), funded by the WorldBank.

In addition to the total projectcost of SCIP, the LGU of Davaodel Sur has ‘counterparted’ orshared P3 million, while themunicipal government pitched in

Local officials and farmers in Sulop, Davao del Sur inauguratetheir first-ever P10.6-M communal irrigation system, jointly fundedby the DA-MRDP and the provincial government.

Davao town gets1st irrigation system

P50,000 for a related livelihoodproject benefiting SIAI members,.It involves a carabao breeding andupgrading project.

The irrigation system’s maincanal has a total length of morethan three kilometers (3,140meters), while its lateral canal isabout 1.8 km (1,800 meters).

Cadiansa said the project wasrealized through the efforts ofDavao del Sur Governor DouglasCagas.

He turned over the completedproject to the SIAI farmer-members on February 4, togetherwith DA-MRDP and WB officialsand Sulop municipal officials ledby Mayor Jose Jimmy S.Sagarino.

Provincial information officerNilda Aniñon said the irrigationproject is part of the totalprovincial development program ofGov. Cagas, called ‘I-HELP Plus,Plus, Plus’ -- for Infrastructure,Health, Education, LivelihoodProgram, which also includestourism, agriculture and

DA assists rat-infested farms in MindanaoThe Department of Agricul-

ture in Region 12 has providedassistance to farmers whoserice crops were damaged byrats in South Cotabato, inSurallah and Tantangan towns,totalling 6,000 tons worth P17million.

DA-12 Regional ExecutiveDirector Amalia Jayag-Datukansaid they have initially distrib-uted 100 kilograms of rodenti-cides or zinc phosphide in ad-dition to the intervention pro-vided by the respective LGUs.

She also instructed the Ag-ricultural Program CoordinatingOfficers (APCOs) and the Re-gional Crop Protection Center(RCPC) to take necessarymeasures to lessen the rat in-festation in rice and corn-pro-ducing areas, and put up sys-tems to prevent similaroccurences in the future.

The South Cotabato Provin-cial Agriculture Office said fromDecember 2010 to January 11,2011, 428 hectares planted torice in 15 barangays inSurallah were attacked by rats,damaging 2,970 metric tons ofpalay worth P8.3 million.

Rice farms in sevenbarangays in Tantangan were

also attacked, destroying 3,152metric tons of palay worth P8.6million.

The DA also conducted amassive information campaignamong farmers on how to elimi-nate rats. This is in addition tothe regular training in pest man-agement under the Farmers’Field School and Palay Checkprogram in palay-producing mu-nicipalities.

Meanwhile, the Provincial Ag-riculture Off ice of NorthCotabato also reported that ratsattacked some 1,350 hectares,in several towns, damagingP12-M worth of palay and othercrops, and affecting 4,881 farm-ers.

From 2010 to February 3,2011, the DA-12 distributed atotal of 425 kilograms of zincphosphide to affected farmersthrough their respective munici-pal LGUs. The rodenticides canserve a total of 20,000 hectares.

To encourage farmers andruralfolk to catch and kill therats, the South Cotabato Pro-vincial Government conducted arat tail campaign, where it givesa kilo of rice to farmers for ev-ery 10 rat tails they present.

UOA in rice starts in Leyte, SamarDespite the incessant rains in

Tacloban City in early January,the DA-Region 8 launched its Uni-versity-on-the-Air (UOA) radio pro-gram on PalayCheck, catering tothousands of farmer-listeners inSamar and Leyte.

“PalayCheck is the most effec-tive strategy to increase our riceyield that translate into higherfarmers’ incomes,” DA-Region 8Director Leo P. Cañeda said.

The UOA on PalayCheck is aradio program course that high-lights eight major rice technolo-gies and management practices.

These are on quality seed se-lection, land preparation, cropestablishment, nutrient manage-ment, water management, pestmanagement, harvest manage-ment, postharvest operations toinclude marketing assistance.

The course has a special fea-ture on submergence-tolerant ricevarieties adaptable to Region 8,and topics on climate change,particularly La Niña, and howfarmers can cope with it.

The 30-minute UOA is airedover DYMS Aksyon Radyo-Catbalogan, 2-2:30 pm, Mondayto Friday. It reaches at least 10municipalities in Samar Province.

It is also aired over DYVLAksyon Radyo-Tacloban City,

also at 2pm to 2:30pm, Mondayto Saturday, catering to listen-ers in Leyte.

For his part, Leyte GovernorCarlos Jericho L. Petilla said,“holding this program is verytimely because today, with theimpulsive weather condition,farmers are hesitant to cultivatetheir farms as they are anxiousthat their time, money and ef-fort may just go in vain.

“This, for me, is applying theso called climate change eco-nomics or ‘making business outof climate change,” he added.

The radio program also in-cludes an educational tour ofthe UOA farmer-students to on-farm and on-station trials at DA-8 research stations.

The tour will enable them tosee for themselves results oftechno-demo of submergence-tolerant rice varieties developedby PhilRice, among other palaycheck technologies.

Leyte and Samar are theregion’s largest rice areas.

Leyte has 58,000 hectares ofrice (37% of the region’s total),contributing 56% to total re-gional production.

Samar has 32,000 hectares,contributing 12% to the region’stotal rice output. (DA-RAFID 8)

socialized housing.She said Davao del Sur is a

major rice-producing province inMindanao, having Hagonoy as itsbiggest rice-yielding town.\

Recently, it received a P179million-worth of modern riceprocessing complex (RPC)funded by the Korean

International CooperationAgency (KOICA) and the DA. Itwill bebuilt in Matanao town.

The RPC will benefit 8,000 to10,000 farexpected boost riceproduction rice production inDavao del Sur. (Carina Cayon,Phil. Info Agency-Region 11)

10

February was again a ‘heart-thumping,’ busy month for Sec.Procy Alcala as he swung onseveral regions and provinces,starting in Nueva Ecija and cap-ping a trip to IRRI headquartersin Los Baños, Laguna.

On February 17, he held abreakfast command conferenceof the National Irrigation Admin-istration (NIA) at the main officeof the Upper Pampanga RiverIntegrated Irrigation Systems(UPRIIS) in Cabanatuan City.Thereafter, he inaugurated theBenigno S. Aquino Sr. Farmer’sTraining Center.

Present during the affair inUPRIIS were NIA AdministratorAntonio Nangel, DAundersecretary Antonio Fleta,Ass’t. Sec. Allan Umali, DA Re-gion 3 Dir. Pedro Jerry Baliang,NIA-UPRIIS Manager ReynaldoPuno and Dante Lazatin, presi-dent of UPRIIS federation of irri-gators’ associations, and NuevaEcija local officials led by Gover-nor Aurelio Umali, CabanatuanCity Mayor Julius Cesar Vergaraand Llanera Mayor Lorna MaeVero.

At mid-morning, he proceededto the Philippine Rice Re-search Institute, at the ScienceCity of Muñoz, visiting severalof its facilities, and mingled withagency officials and staff, andfarmer-trainees.

He was accompanied byPhilRice Dir. Ronilo Beronio,along with Nueva Ecija 2nd Dist.Rep. Joseph Gilbert Violago andMuñoz City Mayor Efren Alvarez.

He also visited a small rumi-nants center (stocked with Anglo-Nubian and Boer goat breeds) atthe Central Luzon State Univer-sity, with CLSU Pres. RubenSevilleja.

Thereafter, he visited the Phil-ippine Center for Postharvest De-velopment and Mechanization(PhilMech), where Dir. RicardoCachuela showed several of theagency’s developedtechnologioes and postharvestequipment.

He had a luncheon meetingand dialogue with farmers andlocal officials at PhilMech, wherehe likewise handed over severalprojects.

Local officials present were:Nueva Ecija Rep. Joseph GilbertViolago, Tarlac 3rd Dist. Rep. JeciLapuz, Nueva Vizcaya Rep.Carlos Padilla, ABONO Party-List Rep. Robert Estrella, MuñozMayor Efren Alvarez, Muñoz ViceMayor Ester Lazaro, Caranglan

Secretary Alcala’s February 2011 travelogueMayor Restituto Abad, Sta. FeMayor Teodorico DP. Padilla, Jr.,and Ambaguio Mayor MoisesAmokla.

After lunch, he visited the Phil-ippine Carabao Center andtoured its facilities, including thegene pool of riverine buffaloesand quarantine site in San JoseCity, where he turned over cer-tificates of entitlement to 200dairy buffaloes to farmer-mem-bers of Nueva Ecija Federationof Dairy Carabao Cooperatives.He was accompanied by PCCExec. Dir. Libertado Cruz andLDC ass’t. dir. Felix Valenzuela.

He visited the Llanera Agricul-tural Technology Center withMayor Lorna Mae Vero and doz-ens of farmers. There, he com-mitted to provide P10 million torepair Llanera’s irrigation sys-tem.

Later in the afternoon, hemotored to Baler, where he haddinner and a well-deserved rest,as guest of Senator EdgardoAngara.

The following day, he had abreakfast meeting with Sen.Angara, Aurora Gov. BellaflorAngara-Castillo, DPWH Secre-tary Rogelio Singson and BFARDir. Malcolm Sarmiento.

He then traveled toDinalupihan on board DA-BFAR patrol boat MCS 3006,skippered by Phil. Coast GuardCaptain Oscar Endona, Jr.

At Dinalupihan, he visited the133-hectare Aurora ProvinceCoconut Development Cen-ter (APCDC) in Brgy.Dibaraybay. the facility is jointundertaking of the DA-PCA,DENR, Dinalungan LGU and theAurora provincial government.

He had lunch at Aurora Pa-cific Economic Zone(APECO), hosted by its deputydirector Ramon Fernando, whobriefed him on APECO’s initia-tives and plans

He then traveled to nearbyCasiguran, where he dialoguedwith farmers and fisherfolk, andlaunched a mariculture park andfish cage livelihood project. Hewas accompanied by CasiguranMayor Reynaldo Bitong, andBFAR off icials led by Dir.Sarmiento, ass’t. dir. Gil Adora,and Region 3 Dir. RemediosOngtangco, MCS group head Dr.Alma Dickson, FMRC ChiefNelson Bien, Aurora MariculturePark Manager Rex Margen, andNIA Region 3 manager VirgilioIlaw.

Thereafter, he visited Dipacu-

Sec. Alcala (2nd from right) leads the launch of a mariculture parkand fish cage livelihood project in Casiguran. With him areCasiguran Mayor Reynaldo Bitong (right), and BFAR dir. MalcolmSarmiento, ass’t. dir. Gil Adora, region 3 dir. Remedios Ongtangco,and FRMC chief Nelson Bien.

(Pls turn to p11)

lao Multi Species Fish Nurseryand turned over a patrol boat toMayor Reynante Tolentino andVice Mayor Teresita Obello. Alsopresent were SEAFDEC Region3 proj. manager Jobert Toledoand APECO Deputy Administra-tor Roby Mathay.

On Feb. 19, he inaugurated theDA-BFAR’s Blue Crab Breed-ing and Hatchery and Sea-weed Tissue Culture Labora-tory at Zabali, Baler, along withDir. Sarmiento and other BFARofficials, and station head andblue crab breeder Wilfredo Cruz.

He then visited a Multi-Spe-cies Fish hatchery at nearbyBgy. Cemento, where he har-vested bangus and pompano. Hewas accompanied by APECOAurora Mariculture Park proj.manager Rex Margen.

In the afternoon, on the wayback to Manila, he passed byBongabon, Nueva Ecija, wherehe had a dialogue with Bongabononion farmers at the MunicipalOffice, with Alan Gamilla, repre-senting his mother, BongabonMayor Amelia Gamilla; ViceMayor Ed Aribe, onion group(UGAT) farmer-leader MagtanggolAlvarez, and Bongabon Munici-pal Agriculture officer Luchi Ceña.

During the program, the 200farmers persdent unanimouslyandprofusely thanked him forwhat he has done--not issuing asingle permit to import onions lastyear. This paved the way to lu-crative onion prices and enabledthem to recover from their lossesin previous years.

On Feb. 23, he visited Isabelawith Exec. Sec. Paquito Ochoa,

where they launched an agro-industry cluster as part of theNational Convergence Initiative(NCI) of the DA, DAR, andDENR.

The affair was hosted byIsabela Gov. Faustino Dy III, andattended by DAR Sec. Virgiliode los Reyes, and DENR USec.Demetrio Ignacio.

Sec. Alcala was accompaniedby USec. Bernadette Romulo-Puyat, PADCC Pres. MarrizAgbon, NIA Administrator Anto-nio Nangel and DA Region II Dir.Andrew Villacorta.

On Feb. 24-25, he visitedJolo and Zamboanga City. Hehad a breakfast meeting withZamboanga City local officialsled by Mayor Celso L. Lobregat,1st Dist. Rep. Isabelle Climaco-Salazar and 2nd Dist. Rep EricoBasilio Fabian. Also presentwere OP undersecretary NabilaA. Tan and Regional com-mander Ramon De Asis, and DAofficials: Region 9 Dir. OscarParawan, BFAR Dir Sarmiento,and BFAR Region 9 Dir.Ahadulla Sahili and PCA Admin-istrator Euclides Forbes.

Going to Jolo, he boarded aPAF plane at Edward AndrewsAirforce Base, led by Major Gen.Renato Lorenzo A. Sanchez.

He led the groundbreakingceremony of the P29-MMaimbung Municipal Fish Portand Ice Plant, along with SuluGov. Abdusakar M. Tan, his sonMaimbung Mayor Samier Tan,PFDA gen. mgr. Rodolfo Paz,BFAR Dir. Sarmiento and DAregion 9 Dir. Parawan.

11February 2011

DA to implement ... (from p3)

Sec. Alcala (right) leads the groundbreaking ceremony of a P29.2-million municipal fish port and cold storage facility in Maimbung,Sulu, funded by the DA-PFDA. With him (from left) are Sulu Gov.Abdusakur Tan, Maimbung Mayor Samier Tan, DA-BFAR dir.Malcolm Sarmiento, DA region 9 director Oscar Parawan, and PFDAgeneral manager Rodolfo Paz.

The facility, when completedin December 2011, will providesmall fisherfolk and their familiessustained source of income andlivelihood, said Sec. Alcala.

It will also spur the economicdevelopment of Maimbung andSulu archipelago, one of therichest fishing grounds in thecountry.

To complement the fish catchfrom the wild, Sec. Alcala saidthe DA-BFAR will establishmariculture parks (MPs) inappropriate coves and bays inthe archipelago. The MPs willcontain fish cages that will berented to small fisherfolk via‘rent-to-own’ scheme.

Sec. Alcala said theMaimbung fish port and coldstorage facility is part ofPresident Aquino’s commitmentto uplift the livelihood of smallf isherfolk in far-f lungcommunities, yet rich in naturaland marine resources.

“Ito po ay isa lamang sa mgaproyekto ni Pangulong Aquinoupang makinabang ang maliliitna mangingisda at iba pa natingmga kababayan — atmanumbalik ang kanilang tiwalasa pamahalaan,” (This is one ofthe many projects of PresidentAquino for the benefit of smallf ishermen and ruralfolk, andhence win back their trust ongovernment), said Sec. Alcala.

For his part, Gov. Tan said theDA-BFAR mariculture parks willalso complement the provincialgovernment’s joint marine fisheryprojects with f ishermen’scooperatives that raise prawns,oysters, and seaweeds.

Sec. Alcala said the DA-BFARwill also put up a seaweed tissueculture laboratory in Sulu toprovide sustainable andcontinuous source of quality,healthy seaweed propagules orplantlets, along with drying andsemi-processing facilities toproduce seaweed chips andpowder.

This twin initiative will furtherenhance the seaweed industryin Sulu, the DA chief said.

He added that fishfarmersshould use tissue-cultured ornew seaweed propagules everythree croppings to avoid diseasessuch as ‘ice-ice.’

During a program held after thegroundbreaking ceremony, Sec.Alcala distributed various farminputs and equipment to farmers’and fishers’ groups.

These included five units ofcassava grater and pressser, andhe committed to provide 45 units

P29-M fishport ... (from p1) more through the DA Region 9under Dir. Oscar Parawan.

He also distributed four shallowtube wells with pump and enginesets, 50 bags of IPB variety 6white corn seeds, and more than100 kilograms of assortedvegetable seeds.

Further, he committed toprovide monthly stipends to 20students who pursue agricultureand fishery courses in Sulu. Thiswill complement the scholarshipprogram sponsored by GovernorTan.

While in Maimbung, Sec. Alcalaalso visited the vegetableproduction project of the 3 rd

Marine Brigade, under thecommand of Col. RemigioValdez.

needs of farmers.During the program, Sec.

Alcala also handed over produc-tion loans and farm machineryand inputs to farmer-beneficiaries.

These included a P11.3-millionloan to two farmers’ cooperatives;two tractors worth P7.6 M to aCauayan farmers’ organizationand Isabela State University; P5-M worth of coffee seedlings andplanting materials (331,000pieces) to farmers in Echague,San Guillermo, San Mariano, Cor-don, and Angadanan; and700,000 tilapia fingerlings for 14Isabela municipalities, amountingto P230,000.

Sec. Alcala said the proposedP2.25-B post harvest projectsform part of President Aquino’sinitiative to attract needed infra-structure in the countrysidethrough public-private partner-ships.

These will complement exist-ing drying facilities already estab-lished in Region 2, particularlythe P500-million corn processingand storage colmplex in ReinaMercedes, Isabela, which Presi-dent Aquino inaugurated in Oc-tober last year.

It is considered the biggestcorn processing plant in the coun-try and in South East Asia, ca-pable of processing 200,000 met-ric tons of corn and storing 60,000metric tons of grains.

Meanwhile, DA UndersecretaryBernadette Romulo Puyat saidthe Korean International Coopera-tion Agency (KOICA) will imple-ment in the country an agri-re-lated climate change projectamounting to P473 million. Shesaid the project will be revalidatedand finalized in April 2011.

In addition to Isabela, the NCItargets to establish eight other

P2.25-B grains ... (from p3)

convergence sites in CentralLuzon, Calabazon, Panay,Negros, Bohol, Zamboanga Pen-insula, Davao, and CARAGA.

During the event, an agreementwas also forged to pursue aP12.9-billion 100-megawatt hy-dro-electric facility in the prov-ince. The proponent, SN Aboitiz,was represented by its ChiefExecutive Off icer EmmanuelRubio, who signed the agree-ment, along with officials of theFilipino Chinese Chamber ofCommerce, PhilMaize, andMindanao Grains.

communication campaign onclimate change, and tap theextension system of the DARFUs, RIARCs, SUCs, LGUs,and the private sector.

• Bureau of AgriculturalResearch - conduct an inventoryof available tools, technologiesand practices for climate changeadaptation and mitigation for useof farmers and fishers.

Finally, Sec. Alcala hasinstructed all DA units, bureaus,attached agencies andcorporations to include saidclimate change initiatives in theproposed 2012 budget and in theMedium Term (2011-2016)-Agricultural DevelopmentProgram (MTADP).

Secretary Alcala’s ... (from p5)After lunch, he went back to

Zamboanga City, where he hada dialogue with commericial fish-ermen and fish canning opera-tors.

The following day, helaunched a tramline system anda tea production and livelihoodproject, at the upland barangayof La Paz, where he was joinedby Rep. Climaco, Councilor ReyCandido, Bgy. Chair Salvador delMundo, and Brgy. KagawadEdgardo Cerna.

He then visited the DA-Region9 San Ramon Research andTecno-Demo Farm for veg-etables and fruit trees and nearbyPhilippine Coconut AuthorityZamboanga Research Center(ZRC). He was joined by PCAAdm. Forbes, PCA Region 9 Di-rector Ramon Rivera and PCA-ZRC manager Gerry Baylon.

Later in the afternoon, hehad a multi-sectoral meeting withfarmers and f isherfolk at theWestern Mindanao State Uni-versity, along with ZamboangaCity Mayor Lobregat, WMSU

president Grace Rebollos, DARARD Agnes Mata, DENR Dir.Manuel Layson, and City Agri-culturist Diosdado Palacat.

After the dialogue, he turnedover to farmers’ groups assortedvegetable seeds, 50 bags ofwhite corn seeds, and one setof shallow tube well.

Before he flew back to Manila,he had a brief meeting with DAregion 9 officials and staff, ledby Dir Parawan.

On Feb. 28, he visited IRRIin Los Baños, Laguna, wherehe attended a farmers’ day anddialogue with Southern Luzonfarmers.

He forged a partnership withIRRI Director General RobertZeigler to train agricultural ex-tension workers on seed bank-ing technology that forms partof the overall goal to attain riceself-sufficiency by end of 2013.

Alcala orders ... (from p1)

provide needed water tofarmlands.

Rehabilitation work entailssimple repair and maintenanceof irrigation canals andtributaries, while restorationinvolves major civil works likeconcreting of damaged portionsof canal and dam structure.

“Let’s do our repair andrestoration works at the mostcost-eff icient way, andsubsequently deliver the neededirrigation water to additionalfarmlands,” the DA chiefstressed.

He enjoined all the NIAregional managers and directorsto diligently perform theirrespective tasks, as he willpersonally inspect someirrigation systems beingrepaired, and gather feedbackfrom local officials and irrigators’associations.

“Kailangan nating ibalik angtiwala ng taumbayan sagobyerno. Ang taumbayan po aynaghahanap na ng resulta (Weneed to regain the people’s truston our government. They arenow expecting results),” Alcalasaid.

For his part, NIA administratorNangel said he is personallyinspecting and overseeingongoing repair and restoration of

Muslim scholars and religiousleaders fully support and endorsethe Halal food standards pro-posed by the Department of Ag-riculture, according to directorSani Macabalang of the DA HalalFood Industry Development Com-mittee.

In his report to Agriculture Sec-retary Proceso J. Alcala,Macabalang said the show ofsupport was a result of the sec-ond round of public consultationson Halal food standards held Feb-ruary 16, 2011, in Gen.SantosCity.

It was attended by 60 Muslimleaders from Regions 11, 12, 13and ARMM (Maguindanao andLanao del Sur). The first batchwas held January 24, 2011, inQuezon City.

“The Muslim leaders haveurged the DA to fast-track the fi-nalization of the new harmonizedhalal food standards and codeof practice for halal poultryslaughter,” said Macabalang,who is the concurrent DA-BFARregion 12 director.

He said the Muslim leaders,especially those who had partici-pated in the crafting of the previ-ous 2008 halal standards, com-mended the comprehensivenessof the new proposed Halal stan-dards as these have consideredmany aspects, including issueson genetically modified organ-isms (GMOs), among others.

Muslim leaders from DavaoCity said they look forward to theadoption of the halal food stan-dards and accompanying ac-creditation requirements to onceand for all stop the proliferationof dubious halal-certified estab-lishments and fake halal prod-ucts in the country.

For his part, Abdurafin Sayedy,head of a local organization ofUlama, enjoined all Muslim lead-

Muslim leaders endorse DA halal food standardsers at the consultation to sup-port the DA proposed standardsto protect the integrity of halalfoods.

Macabalang ensured the par-ticipants that all the inputsraised during the GeneralSantos City consultation will beconsidered in the finalization ofthe draft documents.

Three more consultations will

Sec. Alcala inspects rice seeds at the International Rice ResearchInstitute’s (IRRI) rice germplasm bank.With him are IRRI DirectorGeneral Robert Zeigler and IRRI rice curator Ma. Socorro Almazan.

major irrigation systems invarious parts of the country.NIA 2011 Budget

This year, Alcala said the DAhas allotted P12.79 billion, or 37percent of the DA’s total budget,to enable NIA undertake severallocal and foreign-funded irrigationprojects, including repair andrestoration of national systems.

Altogether, the NIA projectsprogrammed this year will irrigatean additional 156,000 hectares.At two croppings a year and anaverage yield of five tons of palayper hectare per season, saidadditional irrigated area willcontribute at least 1.56 milliontons of palay annually.

With the budget, NIA will beable to construct new systemsthat would irrigate 27,131hectares; repair and rehabilitateexisting systems, servicing100,680 hectares; and restoreold systems that will once againirrigate 28,290 hectares.NIA Budget ‘Frontloading’

During the meeting at UPRIIS,Sec. Alcala also asked the NIAregional managers and projectdirectors to prepare soonest theirrespective 2012 budget. He saidthe DA budget deliberations willcommence in March.

Sec. Alcala clarifies a point during a media conference at the NIA-UPRIIS, in Cabanatuan City, Feb. 17, 2011. Joining him are NuevaEcija Gov. Aurelio M. Umali (middle) and NIA AdministratorAntonio S. Nangel.

be conducted in ZamboangaCity, Cebu City and Bicol.

Macabalang said the new halalstandards would provide the Na-tional Commission for MuslimFilipinos (NCMF) a basis to craftthe guidelines in accrediting halalfood certifiers.

The NCMF is the governmentagency mandated to develop,implement and monitor the halal

food accreditation and certifica-tion system, in partnership withthe DA and other concerned gov-ernment agencies, Macabalangadded.

The global halal food marketis very lucrative, estimated atUS$2.3 trillion, Macabalangsaid.

The Philippine food industrycould benefit from this hugemarket, but it has first to proveits credibility in terms of produc-ing halal foods, he said.

He said he will also proposeto President Aquino and BudgetSecretary Florencio Abad toallow the DA frontload in 2012and 2013 its total irrigationbudget for the next six years,so the NIA could complete allmajor local and foreign projects.

Also present during the NIAnational conference were NuevaEcija local off icials led byGovernor Aurelio Umali.

Other DA off icials alsoattended the meeting, led byundersecretary Antonio Fleta,assistant secretary Allan Umali,DA region 3 director Pedro JerryBaliang, and director RoniloBeronio of the Philippine RiceResearch Institute.

After the meeting, Sec. Alcalainaugurated a farmers’ trainingcenter, named after PresidentAquino’s late grandfather,Benigno S. Aquino, Sr., whoonce served as DA Secretary in1939 to 1941.

After UPRIIS, Sec. Alcalavisited three other DA agenciesin Nueva Ecija: the PhilippineRice Research Institute(PhilRice), Philippine Center forPost harvest Development andMechanization (PhilMech), andPhilippine Carabao Center.