Vol. XXV No. 6 A monthly publication of the Department of Agriculture June 2010

PGMA delivers on ‘BEAT THE ODDS’ targetsPresident Gloria Macapagal

Arroyo has successfully deliveredon the ‘BEAT THE ODDS’ targetsduring her nine-year watch,creating more than 4.4 millionjobs, developing into productiveuse 1.8 million hectares offormerly idle lands, and stabilizingthe supply and prices of basiccommodities for the benefit of low-income consumers.

Said accomplishments werereported by Agriculture SecretaryBernie G. Fondevilla, noting thatfrom 2001 to 2004, the DA wasable to generate 1.8 million jobsand another 2.61 million from2005 to 2009, in compliance withPresident Arroyo’s ‘Beat the Odds’

agenda and the Medium TermPhilippine Development Plan(MTPDP).

‘Beat the Odds’ stands forBalanced budget, Education forall; Automated elections;Transportation; Termination ofhostilities with the NPA and MILF;Healing the wounds of EDSA;Electricity and water for thewhole country; Opportunities for10 million jobs; Decongest MetroManila; and Development ofSubic and Clark.

Fondevilla said that oncreating opportunities for 10million jobs and decongestingMetro Manila, the DA was able

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With only one area in Luzon re-maining, the Philippines hasinched closer to being declaredentirely free of the dreaded Footand Mouth Disease(FMD), as theDepartment of Agriculture in May2010 received a certification from

Entire RP may soon be FMD-freethe Paris-based Office Interna-tional des Epizooties (OIE) orWorld Organization for AnimalHealth that declares Zones 1and 3 in Luzon as FMD-freewithout vaccination.

Agriculture Secretary BernieG. Fondevilla received the cer-tificate during the 78th GeneralSession of the World Assemblyof OIE Delegates in Paris, May23 to 28, 2010.

The certificate was issued onMay 27 and signed by OIE Di-rector General Bernard Vallatand its President Carlos A.Correa Messuti.

Secretary Fondevilla was ac-companied by Assistant DirectorVictor C. Atienza of the DA’sBureau of Animal Industry (DA-BAI) and head of the nationalFMD task force; and Dr. ReildrinG. Morales, deputy head andnational coordinator of the na-tional FMD task force.

Zone 1 covers north Luzon,particualrly the Cordillera Admin-istrative Region, Cagayan Valley(Region 2), and the province ofAurora in Region 3 and IlocosNorte, Ilocos Sur and La Unionin Region 1.

Zone 2 or mid-Luzon coversRegion 3 except Aurora prov

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With the theme, ‘Sapat naPagkain ang Tunay naKalayaan,’ the Department ofAgriculture celebrated its112th anniversary, June 23,2010, in simple ceremoniesled by Secretary Bernie G.Fondevilla.

The day-long activitieskicked off with the unveiling ofnew and refurbished DAbronze markers and photoexhibit of agriculturesecretaries, from 1898 to thepresent, at the DA lobby.

Thereafter, DA officials,employees and guestsattended a thanksgiving massin honor of San IsidroLabrador, patron saint ofpeasants, at the DA-BSWMconvention hall.

A simple program followed,

DA turns 112

President Arroyo hands over a Presidential Citation to AgricultureSecretary Bernie G. Fondevilla on behalf of the Department of Ag-riculture for successfully implementing poverty alleviation programsthat provided the poor and marginalized sectors of society, includ-ing small farmers and fisherfolk, and greater access to basic ser-vices. Looking on are DA Undersecretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat(right) and Sarangani fisherfolk Romulo Idan-Santos.

President Gloria Macapagal Ar-royo awarded a presidential cita-tion to the Department of Agricul-ture and six other governmentagencies for successfully imple-menting poverty alleviation pro-grams and providing millions ofpoor and marginal Filipinosnationwide.greater access to ba-sic services.

Agriculture Secretary Bernie G.Fondevilla and UndersecretaryBerna Romulo Puyat received theDA’s citation from President Ar-royo at Malacañang CeremonialHall, June 2, 2010.

The DA is cited for anti-povertyprograms under the Agricultureand Fisheries Modernization Act(RA 8435).

These include the constructionof 6,305 kilometers of farm-to-market-roads; generation of23,390 hectares of new irrigatedareas; rehabilitation and restora-tion of old irrigation systems, pro-viding water to 415,409 hectares;

DDDDDA cited fA cited fA cited fA cited fA cited for successfulor successfulor successfulor successfulor successful

anti-poanti-poanti-poanti-poanti-povvvvverererererty prty prty prty prty prooooogggggrrrrramamamamam

and distribution of 41.4 million kilosof organic fertilizers and 3.56 mil-lion fertilizer discount coupons,benefiting 1.78 million farmers.

The DA also provided 2.23milllion farmers subsidized hybridand certified seeds for a total of 3.2million hectares; distributed 85,478head of various farm animals, and452 million fingerlings and four mil-lion pieces of broodstock; installed2.016 flatbed dryers nationwide thathelped farmers minimize post-har-vest losses and released P4.9 bil-lion worth of loans to 141,916 farm-ers and fisherfolk, which increasedtheir capacity to invest more inagribusiness.

The other awardees were thedepartments of social welfare anddevelopment (DSWD), health(DOH), trade and industry (DTI),National Anti-Poverty Commission(NAPC), Technical Education andSkills Development Authority(TESDA), and the Philippine HealthInsurance Corporation (PhilHealth).(OPS)

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Ikinalulugod kong batiinang mga kawani at iba pangpinuno ng Kagawaran ngPagsasaka sa paggunita ngating ika-112 anibersaryo, namay temang “Sapat naPagkain ang Tunay naKalayaan.”

Nang lagdaan niPangulong Emilio Aguinaldoang proklamasyon nanagtatag sa Department ofAgriculture andManufacturing noong ika-23ng Hunyo 1898, nilikha niyaang isang institusyon na angkahalagahan sa buhay ngbawat Pilipino ay tumitingkadsa paglipas ng panahon.

Dumanas man angnapakaraming pagbabago atpagsubok sa pagdaloy ngmga taon, ang Kagawaranay nanatiling isang matatagna haligi ng pamahalaan natunay na nagmamalasakit sakapakanan ng mga maliliit namagsasaka, mangingisda atiba pang taga-nayon.

Kapuri-puri na mula noon,hanggang ngayon, angkalayaan ng sambayananmula sa kagutuman,karukhan at kawalang-pag-asa ang siyang matibay napinaninindigan ngKagawaran.

Sa katunayan, sa loob ngaking mahigit apat na taongpaglilingkod sa Kagawaran--mula sa pagiging pinuno ngNational Agricultural andFishery Council hanggang sapagiging Kalihim--ay

nasaksihan ko ang inyongpagsisikap na matupad angmga adhikaing sapat at abot-kayang pagkain at masmataas na kita sakanayunan.

Sa pagdiriwang na ito,panibagong kabanata angmagbubukas para sa lahatng bumubuo at umaagapaysa Kagawaran, upangharapin ang mga suliranin atmatinding hamon kagaya ngpabago-bagong klima ngmundo at tumitindingkumpetisyon sapandaigdigang kalakalan.

Kaya, hangad ko angibayong pagtutulungan ngKagawaran, mgamagsasaka, mangingisda atiba pang sektor na katuwangng pamahalaan sapagsusulong ng tunay atmalawakang kaunlaran atmodernisasyon ng sektor ngagrikultura.

Isang maligaya atmakabuluhang anibersaryosa ating lahat!

Atty. Bernie G. FondevillaKalihim

Kagawaran ng Pagsasaka

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

Mc. Bien Saint Garcia

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 AgricultureInformation Service, Elliptical Road, Diliman, Quezon City. Tel. nos. 9288741loc 2148, 2150, 2155, 2156 or 2184; 9204080 or tel/fax 9280588. This issue isavailable in PDF file. For copies, please send requests via email:da_afis@yahoo.com.

Editor-In-Chief : Noel O. Reyes

Associate Editors: Karenina Salazar & Cheryl C. Suarez

Photograhers: Jose Lucas, Alan Jay Jacalan, Alarico

Nuestro,& Kathrino Ressurrecion

Lay-out Artist: Bethzaida Bustamante

Printing & Circulation: Teresita Abejar & PCES Staff

FIELDS: Matibay na haligi ng agrikultura Ibayong pagtutulungan tungo sa patuloy

na kaunlaran ng kanayunanMaligayang pagbati samga opisyal at kawani ngKagawaran ng Pagsasakasa pagdiriwang ng ika-112taon ng paglilingkod.

Sa pagsisimula ng akingpanunungkulan bilangPangulo nuong 2001, maysapat na tayong mga batasat programa paramapaunlad ang sektor ngagrikultura.

Kaya naman, ang nagingmalaking hamon ay kungpaano paano pagaganahinang mga regulasyon na ito,nang maging sapat angating pagkain at umunladang mga magsasaka atmangingisda.

Sinikap nating baguhinang kaisipan sa paglalagayng kapital sa agrikultura.

Mula sa pagbibigaytulong pinansiyal sa mgamagsasaka tuwingpanahon ng taniman, maspinili nating maglaan ngpondo sa imprastraktura,para masiguro angpagsulong ng sektor di langsa isang taniman, kundi samatagal na panahon.Itoang layunin ng atingprogramang FIELDS.

Kasama ang DA at sapakikipagtulungan sa mgalokal na pamahalaan atpribadong sektor,naisusulong natin anglayon na pambansangkasapatan sa pagkain atpagiging malaya sa pag-aangkat.

Kaya halos dinoble angpondo ng Kagawaran naumabot sa P21 bilyon kadataon mula sa P11 bilyonnoong panahon niPangulong Ramos at P17bilyon sa ilalim niPangulong Estrada.

Nagbigay daan angpondong ito sa dagdag nalupang natubigan (1.6milyong ektarya), pautangpara sa magsasaka (P465bilyon) at pagsasagawa ngkinakailangang pagsasanay

(23,000 trainings).Bukod dito, naramdaman

ng mga magsasaka angasenso. Higit sa isangmilyong ektarya angnaibukas at naihanda parasa agribusiness mula 2005hanggang 2009, nagbunsodpara magkaroon ng higitdalawa at kalahating milyong(2.5 milyon) dagdag natrabaho.

Ginawan din ng paraan namaibaba ang gastusin sapagsasaka. Higit salabingwalong libongkilometro (18,000) ng farm-to-market roads at dagdagna cold chain systems, coldfreezers ang naibigay.Nakapagpatayo ng higitwalumpong (80) BagsakanCenters at higit limangdaang (500) BarangayBagsakan.

Ang mga ito angnagsilbing matibay na haliging agrikultura, na inaasahannating mapapaunlad pa lalong mga susunod na pinunong bansa.

Nais nating ipagpatuloynila ang pagtulong sa mgamagsasaka at mangingisda,nang matupad na ang atinglayon na sapat na pagkainsa mesa ng bawat pamilyangPilipino.

Muli, maligayanganibersaryo sa inyo,mabuhay kayong lahat!

GLORIA MACAPAGAL-ARROYOPangulo

Republika ng Pilipinas

June 2010

‘There’s enoughsugar’

‘FIELDS of Glory’ is off the press

The country has enoughsugar with the additionalsupply of 150,000 metrictons of imports, until the startof the milling season inNovember.

Administrator BernardoTrebol of the DA-SugarRegulatory Administrationsaid with the arrival ofimported sugar in July,“there is no justifiable reasonfor the increase in prices ofsugar”.

He explained thatalthough production for thiscrop year is only 1.97 millionmetric tons (MT), down by 6percent from previous cropyear, there are still about600,000 MT (12 million 50-kilogram bags) available, asof June 2010, which is morethan enough to cover thecountry’s domesticrequirements for three tofour months. (DA-SRA)

The Department of Agricultureis stepping up the implementa-tion of measures to mitigate theimpact of La Niña weather phe-nomenon on the farm sector inthe second half of 2010 to en-sure that its palay productionprogram remains on track.

Agriculture Secretary BernieFondevilla said the preparationsfor La Niña include the repairand rehabilitation of irrigationsystems and farm-to-marketroads, as well as early position-ing of seeds for farmers for thewet season main crop.

However, he is confident thateven with the drought damagefrom El Niño and the possibleeffect from La Niña this year, theagriculture sector would likelymanage to expand by 2.5 per-cent — barring any storm of“Ondoy-like” proportions.

Tropical storm Ondoy, whichstruck mostly Metro Manila andCentral Luzon in September lastyear, brought a month’s worth ofrain in just six hours, causingmassive floods and billions ofpesos worth of property dam-ages and crop losses, particu-larly on the palay and cornsubsectors.

“For La Niña, among the

DA steps up measures to mitigateLa Niña on palay production

preparations are the rehabilita-tion work on irrigation and farm-to-market roads,” Fondevillasaid.

“After that, what’s important isthe pre-positioning of seeds forour farmers because the rainshave already started to come,and some of them are alreadypreparing to plant,” he added.

The DA’s GinintuangMasaganang Ani (GMA) riceprogram’s proposed budget ofP12.3 billion would allow theimplementation of various initia-tives, including La Niña mitiga-tion measures.

The budget is on top of whatwould be spent in the event thatcalamities strike the farm sec-tor in the remaining months ofthe year, Fondevilla said. (Phil.

Star)

President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo received a copy of the‘Fields of Glory’ coffee tablebook from Agriculture SecretaryBernie Fondevilla and former DAchief congressman-elect ArthurYap, during its launch, June 18,2010, in Quezon City.

The 246-page bookchronicles the major accom-plishments of her administrationduring the past nine years, fo-cusing on food security and suf-ficiency, including success sto-ries of farmers, fishers, and agri-entrepreneurs.

FIELDS is the acronymn ofgovernment’s six major interven-tions to increase farm produc-tivity and incomes: Fertilizer; Ir-rigation and Infrastructure; Edu-cation and Extension Services;Loans and Credit; Dryers andother Postharvest Facilities; andSeeds.

During the book launch, ben-eficiaries and stakeholders per-sonally narrated their respectivestories of triumph made possiblethru the intervention and supportof the Arroyo government, par-ticularly the DA and its regionalfield offices, bureaus and at-tached agencies.

Under the fertilizer compo-nent, Ronello Bartasan of Gen.Natividad, Nueva Ecija, said heand fellow farmers are now pro-ducing their own organic fertil-izer which they use, enablingthem to raise and harvest chemi-

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President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo holds a copy of ‘FIELDS ofGlory,’ chronicling the major achievements in the area of foodsecurity and sufficiency during her nine-year tenure. Flanking herare Agriculture Secretary Bernie G.. Fondevilla (2nd from left) andformer DA chief and Congressman-elect Arthur C. Yap (extremeright), during the book launch at the DA-BSWM in Quezon City.

enough savings for his family’sfuture use.

Miller Bicaldo boasted of thebenefits of dryers andpostharvest facilities in minimiz-ing losses after harvest. He wasable to store good quality palayand earn more because of saidfacilities.

Another farmer from NuevaEcija, Gelises Ladores, recalledhow he was able to harvest morethan 100 cavans of palay fromhis 1.5-hectare farm with the useof submergence-tolerant riceseeds developed by the DA’sPhilippine Rice Research Insti-tute. While Ladores’ farm isflood-prone, now he can make itproductive.

Other testimonials were givenby: Jose Maria Zabaleta, Pres.and CEO of Bronzeoak CleanEnergy, who spoke on renewableenergy, citing the favorable im-pact of government’s biofuelsprogram; and outstandingGawad Saka sugarcane farmerPreciosa Maturan, who laudedthe DA’s program for sustainingthe productivity and incomes ofsugarcane farmers.

Also present at the booklaunch were other successfulfarmers: Edwin Paraluman ofSouth Cotabato, for biotechnol-ogy; Ramil Barte of Sariaya,Quezon, for market linkage; andLorenzo Plotado of Sta. Cruz,Camarines Sur, for fertilizer.(Adora Rodriguez, DA Info Service)

cal-free rice and other crops.produce.

Bartasan is an officer of theNational Farm Center, one of theagri-socio projects of the Catho-lic Bishops Conference of thePhilippines-National Secretariatfor Social Action.

Under the irrigation compo-nent, Ariel Dolores of Guimba,Nueva Ecija, said he and fellowfarmers were able to trim theirproduction costs, thanks toFIELDS.

With their properly maintainedirrigation system, Guimba ricefarmers no longer spend muchfor fuel for their irrigation pumps.Further, they are now able tooptimize farm inputs such fertil-izers.

Another farmer, EfraimAcacio, from Sta. Ana, Cagayan,said he was hesistant at first toundergo farmers’ training. Henarrated how he got free tech-nical assistance provided by theDA thru local agricultural exten-sion workers. With new tech-nologies, he was able to in-crease his farm yield and in-come.

Judy Aruta, loan-beneficiaryfrom Valencia City, Bukidnon,said the easy-to-pay credit pro-vided by government financialinstitutions to small farmers hashelped him expand his farm. Hewas also able to provide for hisfamily’s basic needs, send hischildren to school, and maintain

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Agriculture Secretary Bernie Fondevilla (left) and International RiceResearch Institute (IRRI) director-general Robert Zeigler sign amemorandum of agreement on ‘Electronic Extension Services forAgricultural Extension Workers on Proper Nutrient Managementfor Rice in the Philippines,’ at IRRI, Los Banos, Laguna. Throughthe project, extension workers and farmers will get timely and rel-evant information on the proper nutrient management for paddyrice or palay through an IRRI-developed IT-based system. Lookingon are DA-Agricultural Training Institute director Asterio P. Saliotand IRRI principal scientist Dr. Roland J. Buresh.

PGMA creates Bamboo Council The PBIDC shall be com-

posed of the secretaries of thedepartments of agriculture, tradeand industry, environment andnatural resources, education, sci-ence and technology, and labor,chairperson of the League of theMunicipalities of the Phils., tworepresentatives from NGOs, anda representative each from twobamboo industry associations.

The DA shall identify idle andmarginal areas suitable for bam-boo plantations, without sacrific-ing areas used for food produc-tion.

It will also assist in establish-ing bamboo nurseries and propa-gation of bamboo shoots.

EO 879 sets an initial fund ofP20M for the operations ofPBIDC, which shall be providedby the Department of Budget andManagement. (Emily B. Bordado,DA-RFU5 Info Div.)

Telecom to provide information tofarmers through Interactive VoiceResponse via a four-digit hotlinenumber which will be announcedsoon.

The DA through ATI has set upthe FCC to allow farmers to talkextensively with the DA expertsor LGU agricultural technicians toget guidance and information onvarious concerns.

Farmers don’t have to worryabout high prices on call rateswhen contacting the FCC, as thePhilippine Long Distance Tele-phone Company (PLDT) hasagreed to set a flat rate of onlyP7 per call.

Both the NMRice and FCCprojects are part of the extensioncomponent of the DA’s FIELDSprogram.

Through the FCC, farmers,fishers, and the general public,can ask anything on agriculture,fisheries and related issues andconcerns, such as current pricesof commodities, schedule of irri-gation water releases, marketingof farm produce, and control mea-sures for crop pests and animaldiseases.

The FCC may be accessedthrough the following hotlines: • 1-800-10-982AGRI (or 1-800-10-982-2474) for provincialtollfree calls using PLDT lines; • 982AGRI (or 982-2474) forcalls within Metro Manila; • 391DA (or 391-32) for textmessages using Smart and Talk& Text; • 0920-946AGRI (0920-946-2474) for mobile calls and textmessages using Globe, TM andSun Cellular; • info@e-extension.gov.ph forinquiries through email; • www.e extension.gov.ph andwww.ati.da.gov.ph for onlinediscussion fora and instantmessaging.

DA-IRRI hi-tech projectto boost palay yields

With the use of mobile phonesor internet, farmers and agricul-tural extension workers anywherein the country, and anytime of theday, would know what kind, typeand amount of fertilizers theyneed to apply to their rice crop.

This will be made possiblethrough a one-year project be-tween the Department of Agricul-ture and the International Rice Re-search Institute (IRRI), called‘Electronic Extension Services forAgricultural Extension Workers onProper Nutrient Management forRice in the Philippines.’

Through this initiative, exten-sion workers and farmers willhave access to technical informa-tion on proper nutrient manage-ment for palay in only 15 minutesthrough the use of an informationtechnology-based resource sup-port tool developed by IRRI, called‘NMRice’ or Nutrient Managementfor Rice.

Agriculture Secretary BernieFondevilla and IRRI Director Gen-eral Robert Zeigler recently forgedan agreement to implement theproject that will also tap the exist-

ing Farmers’ Contact Center(FCC) managed by the DA’s Ag-ricultural Training Institute (ATI).

The IRRI has developed theNMRice or fertilizer managementguidelines and recommendationsbased on data gathered from vari-ous rice-growing Philippine prov-inces, rice varieties, productionpractices, and yields.

Fondevilla said the projectwould be useful in improvingpalay production as farmerswould know what kind and howmuch fertilizers they need to ap-ply, depending on type of soil,localion and season.

The system is user-friendly, asfarmers and extension workerswill only have to answer 10 to 15simple questions either by click-ing on a computer or pressingnumbers on a cellular or landlinephone.

Their request will be answeredwithin 15 minutes.

For his part, ATI Director Saliotsaid the IRRI will provide the dataon improved production prac-tices, while the DA will promotethe NMRice system and put inplace the mechanism for deliver-ing the information to farmers.

The DA, through the ATI, willrelease P1.8 million to the IRRIto carry out the project.

For this project, the DA andIRRI will tap the services of Globe

The pliant bamboo, often usedto symbolize the resiliency of Fili-pinos because of its ability to ad-just and easily recover from allkinds of stress and pressures, isnow given due recognition andsupport it deserves with the cre-ation of the Philippine BambooIndustry Development Council(PBIDC) by President Arroyo thruExecutive Order No. 879, signedon May 14, 2010.

The PBIDC is tasked to pro-mote the sustained developmentof the country’s bamboo indus-try.

EO 879 directs the Departmentof Education to use bamboo forat least 25 percent of the deskand other furniture requirementsof public elementary and second-ary schools. It likewise instructsgovernment facilities to prioritizethe use of bamboo in furniture,fixtures and other constructionrequirements.

NAFC leads dialogueson water concernsThe DA’s National Agricul-

tural and Fishery Council(NAFC) successfully con-ducted an area-wide confer-ence in Cagayan de Oro City,covering northen Mindanao,entitled “Charting Our WaterFuture: A Multi-StakeholderPolicy and Program Dia-logue.”

It was the first of the sched-uled six-leg regional series, inpartnership with two other DAagencies (Bureau of Soils andWater Management, and Bu-reau of Fisheries and AquaticResources), National WaterResources Board, NationalAnti-Poverty Commission, andSN|Aboitiz Power Group.

The dialogues aim to de-velop a plan of action toachieve water security for theagriculture and fisheries sec-tor, and encourage stakehold-ers to adapt integrated waterresources management prac-tices such as water use effi-ciency, demand managementand watershed protection.(DA-NAFC)

June 2010

Dry-tolerant but high-yieldingvarieties of peanut, pigeonpea,and chickpea, from India areperforming well in the Philip-pines.

The DA’s Bureau of Agricul-tural Research (BAR) said thevarieties were developed by theInternational Crop Research In-stitute for Semi-Arid Tropics(ICRISAT), in Andhra Pradesh,India.

BAR Director NicomedesEleazar said the finding was the

Dryland crops from India

show promising results in RP

President Gloria Macapagal Ar-royo recently signed Republic ActNo. 10089, creating the PhilippineRubber Research Institute(PRRI), which will be under thecontrol and supervision of the De-partment of Agriculture.

Based at the Mindanao StateUniversity in Naga, ZamboangaSibugay, PRRI is mandated to ini-tiate and administer research anddevelopment (R&D) programs toincrease the productivity and im-prove the quality of local rubberto benefit small producers andprocessors.

The agency is also tasked todevelop and propagate qualityrubber tree seedlings, and pro-mote the planting, maintenance,and proper use of rubber trees assource of latex and finished prod-ucts.

New DA attached agency

Rubber research institute createdIt should also provide training

and capability building programsto rubber producers, processorsand cooperatives, and help in theestablishment of barangay-based enterprises to generatelivelihood opportunities.

The Institute is also mandatedto promote cooperative develop-ment among smallholders andinitiate R&D projects to addresstechnology and policy gaps. Itshall ensure production stan-dards to meet domestic and glo-bal market demands.

Moreover, the PRRI is taskedto establish strong linkages withother research institutions andgovernment agencies, and in-dustry stakeholders in formulat-ing strategies to jump-start thedevelopment growth of thecountry’s rubber industry.

result of a one-year “Field Test-ing of ICRISAT Legume Variet-ies and Technologies in Se-lected Regions of the Philip-pines.”

The project tested several va-rieties of peanut, pigeonpea(kadyos), and chickpea (garban-zos) for their suitability under lo-cal conditions in seven pilot re-gions, namely: Regions 1, 5, 6,7, 8, 9, and 10.

Package of technologies(POT) for growing these cropsare also being developed to en-sure high yield under differentPhilippine climate types.

With the introduction of the

At left are dried chickpea or gar-banzos, and below are standingcrop of pigeonpea or kadyos.(DA-BAR photos)

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Agriculture Secretary Bernie Fondevilla hands over to Educa-tion Secretary Mona Valisno initial sets of posters on six vegetablesat the DepEd office, in Pasig City. Totaling 45,000 pieces, the post-ers--on munggo, dahon ng gabi, malunggay, saluyot, kangkongand ampalaya--were funded by the DA-Bureau of Plant Industry(BPI) under its Gulayan sa Paaralan program and will be distrib-uted to public schools nationwide. Looking on (from left) are BPIplanning and management chief Rhoda Grace Pintuan, BPI Dir.Larry Lacson, DepEd-Health and Nutrition Center OIC ThelmaNavarres and OIC-assistant Dir. Dr. Maria Corazon Dumlao.

new crops, the project aims todevelop alternative crops thatwill help Filipino farmers copewith increasing dry spell eventsin the country and address foodinadequacy in the rural areas.

Dir. Eleazar said severalICRISAT varieties introduced inthe country for field testing havealready shown promising resultsand have been identified for theirpotential breeding lines.

These breeding lines, if foundstable in producing high yield inthe succeeding yield trials, couldbe included in the nationalscreening preliminary to their in-troduction to farmers nationwide.

The adaptability yield trial onpeanut showed that ICGV 00350and ICGV 99046 peanut lineswere consistent high-yieldersamong the four ICRISAT entriesevaluated.

Noticeably, these two promis-ing selections significantly out-yielded most of the national andlocal check varieties (NSIC Pn11, NSIC Pn 12, NSIC Pn 14,and NSIC Pn 15) in almost allthe test stations.

The two promising lines will beconsidered for further yield andadaptability test on-station andon-farm to obtain more reliableresults for inclusion as test en-tries under National CooperativeTest (NCT) in the Philippines.

In the adaptability trial forpigeonpea, it was found that fourgenotypes (ICPL 88034, ICPL88039, ICPL 81 and ICPL 161)

bore flowers and developed intopods in all locations, where thelines were tested.

These genotypes produced aseed yield of 0.87-1.28 t/ha.

Although ICP 7035, ICPL87091, ICPL 87051 and ICPL87119 did not perform well in theVisayas, these genotypes per-formed better in Regions 5, 9and 10.

Results of the adaptabilityyield trials for chickpea showedvery encouraging results andwith bright future for chickpeaproduction, particularly in trialsconducted in NorthernMindanao.

Initial results revealed similarperformance of chickpea withthose in Benguet Province andnoted that the agro-climatic con-dition is ideal for chickpea pro-duction.

The Philippines imports about735 tons of chickpea per year(valued at US$ 442T or P20M)to meet local demand for gar-banzos.

Dr. William D. Dar, directorgeneral of ICRISAT and formerDA secretary, is hopeful aboutthis project endeavor with BAR.

“We hope that through thisproject, we will be able to iden-tify varieties for peanut,chickpea, and pigeonpea thatwe could recommend to ourfarmers in the drier areas of thecountry so they could get stableyields and higher incomes,” hesaid. (Rita T. dela Cruz, DA-BAR)

DeDeDeDeDeparparparparpartment oftment oftment oftment oftment of Ag Ag Ag Ag Agriculturriculturriculturriculturricultureeeee112th Anniversary Pictorials

DA-BPI’s Malunggay Lugaw and Ice Creamtasting for schoolchildren

Ribbon-cutting of the “DA Then and Now” exhibit,featuring former Secretaries and their respective accomplishments.

Unveiling of the DA marker

Renewal of Pledge onDA’s Mission/Vision

Recognition of DA-OSEC blood donors

Launch of AFMISand Nokia MobileData Gathering

Solutions

Presentation of OIE Certificate to the Philip-pines declaring parts of Luzon as FMD-free

112th

Awarding of Top Sales Performers ofDA Agribusiness Exports Showroom

DA Anniversary

Wine tasting andflairtending showcasing

tropical wines

Launch of Online Import Application,Processing and Approval of Permit

Awarding of loyalty plaques to DAfamily employees (20-45 yrs.)

8

Mariculture park to rise in CagayanThe DA’s Bureau of

Fisheries and AquaticResources (BFAR) willestablish a mariculture park inBarangay Racat, Sta. Ana,Cagayan.

The agency and the DA’sNational Fisheries Researchand Development Institutehave both found the areafeasible to set up said project.

Mariculture parks are ma-rine-based industrial estatesubdivided into sections orlots for various marine enter-prises with communal storm-resistant mooring system andboundary markers.

DA-BFAR national directorMalcolm Sarmiento said theestablishment of maricultureparks is an “important adap-tation strategy to cushion theimpending adverse and wide-spread effect of climatechange.”

These industrial estates inthe sea are BFAR’s interven-tion to wean fishermen awayfrom capture fisheries and turnthem from being fish huntersto fishfarmers.

DA-BFAR Region 2 DirectorJovita Ayson said that theyhave already completed theinstallation of a fish cage (10m x 10 m x 5 m) as a test unitto confirm the suitability of theproposed mariculture site.

Full operation of the mari-culture park will commenceafter site validation.

The initial techno-demo willuse the ‘rope frame fish cage’method developed by BFARRegion 1, as it is cheaper andmore sturdy compared to GIpipe frame cages.

Around 300 hectares havebeen assessed and consid-ered as potential site forCagayan Valley’s first evermariculture project.

As of April 20, 2010, the DA-BFAR has set up a total of 54mariculture zones throughoutthe country, with 9 more setfor launching. These are lo-cated in 12 regions, namely:1, 3, 4A, 4B, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11,13, and ARMM.

The DA-BFAR through its“rent-a-cage” program makesavailable 1 fish cage (10m x10m x 5 meters) plus inputs(fingerlings and feeds) foreach qualified municipalfisherfolk association benefi-ciaries.

The fish cage is amortizedfor two years, while the inputsare payable after every har-vest. One cage could earn anet income of P90,000 ayear.

Small investors, on onehand, are offered two moor-ing points that can hold acage with maximum surfacedimension of 20 meters x 20meters.

Big players, on the otherhand, should shoulder all thecosts from the installation ofthe moors and cages to op-eration of fish cages. DA-BFAR will provide technicalassistance.

Potential species for cul-ture in mariculture parks arebangus, grouper (lapu-lapu),abalone, pomfret (pompano),siganid (malaga), sea bass(apahap), snapper(mangagat), mud crab,seaweeds, sea horse, mus-sel (tahong), lobster, oyster(talaba), giant clam, sea ur-chin, sergeant fish (tasi),caranx (talakitok), saline tila-pia, and blister pearl produc-tion.

Apart from fish cage opera-tion, investors in a maricul-ture zone could also engagein ancillary industries like fishhatchery and nursery, trans-port services, processingplant, fabrication of cagesand other equipment,postharvest facilities, feedmills, and aqua-tourism.

According to businessmodels prepared by BFAR at2007 prices, a 5m x 5m x 5mbamboo frame cage requiresa total investment ofP447,060 for threecroppings, with net incomeprojected at P211,917 for areturn of investment (ROI) of49 percent.

The bamboo frame couldlast two years, while the netcage is good for five years.

A set of seven units of GIpipe fish cages, on the otherhand, requires a P2.1-millioninvestment, and input costs ofP7.95 million for threecroppings. Fish production isestimated at 157,500 kilo-grams of bangus, with net in-come at P4.12 million andROI of 48 percent. GI pipecages could last for 10 years.(Manila Bulletin)

DA Region 3 Director Redentor S. Gatus (2nd from left) and DA-HVCC National Program Coordinator Rene Rafael Espino (3rdfrom left) pose with Ricardo Buenaventura (middle), CentralLuzon’s outstanding hybrid rice farmer. Flanking them (from left)are DA-RFU3 RTD Eduardo Gonzales, Butil Party-list Represen-tative Agapito Guanlao, DA-RFU3 RTD Rolando Imperial andDA-BFAR 3 Dir. Remedios Ongtangco.

The Department of AgricultureRegional Field Unit 3 (DA-RFU3) has successfully conducted aweek-long Agri-Aqua Trade Faircelebration, with the themeIsang Linggong PagdiriwangBago ang Araw ng Kalayaan,from June 7 to 11, 2010, in SanFernando, Pampanga.

DA-RFU 3 Regional DirectorRedentor S. Gatus led the open-ing of the trade fair, which show-cased various products from theseven provinces of the region,including fruits and vegetables,native handicrafts, delicacies,

DA-RFU3 conducts week-longagri-aqua trade fair

beverages, wines and herbalsupplements, among others.

Information booths and exhib-its from the different DA attachedagencies were also set in place.

Livelihood and entrepreneur-ial lectures and demonstrationswere also conducted.

Highlighting the event was theawarding ceremony for the2009-2010 Regional GawadSaka winners who haveachieved outstanding feats, interms of productivity and in-comes, in their respective farm-ing enterprises.

DA Bicol celebrates 112th Anniversary

Department of Agriculture Re-gion 5 officials and personnelcelebrated the agency’s 112th

year of existence and ‘WorldEnvironment Day’ in simple butmeaningful activities.

The celebration showcasedphoto exhibits on variousprograms of the departmentdepicting the theme: “Sapat naPagkain ang Tunay naKalayaan.”

The FIELDS program, whichis the centerpiece program of theArroyo administration, was themain feature of the exhibits.

A short program attended bythe employees was opened witha message by Director EdgarMadrid, RTD for Research andcurrently officer-in-charge. Thiswas followed by a presentationof DA’s history and milestone.

The second part of the day-long activity was the conduct ofsymposium on 1) Understand-ing the Ecological Solid WasteManagement Act (RA 9003 dis-

cussed by Engineer Nanette A.Tidon of Environment Manage-ment Bureau of the DENR re-gional office; and 2) Stress andTime Management discussed byDr. Ma. Dolores Detera–Salud,Supervising Personnel Special-ist from the Civil Service Com-mission.

On the same occasion, the“BIDA KA” program waslaunched, which aims to recog-nize significant role and contri-bution of an individual, group,or functional unit within the DAorganization which have signifi-cant impact on the agency’sperformance and the agricul-ture sector.

The celebration was cappedby physical fitness activities likedance, exercises and sportswhich gave opportunity to theemployees to unwind, re-chargeand flex their muscles anddrive away stress.(Emily B.

Bordado, DA-RFU 5 Info Div.)

9June 2010

The most important aspectin the implementation of anyprogram is human resources.”

This was emphasized by De-partment of Agriculture Region9 (Zamboanga Peninsula) Ex-ecutive Director Oscar O.Parawan during the coordina-tion meeting and workshop ofthe DA’s Mindanao Rural De-velopment Program 2(MRDP2), June 17-18, 2010,in Pagadian City.

About 80 municipal may-ors, provincial and municipalprogram development officers,municipal agriculturists, andprovincial DA-MRDP2 compo-nent heads attended the two-day workshop.

Dir. Parawan said that ca-pacitating both implementersand recipients is a primordialconcern for projectsustainability.

“This is on top of the machin-eries and facilities targeted forthe beneficiaries.

“We are glad that one ofMRDP’s strategies is to en-hance the skil ls of theprimemovers and the benefi-ciaries, who will maintain andsustain the projects.

“Our strength is in the imple-menting units from thebarangays to the municipaland provincial levels,”Parawan noted.

MRDP2 is a poverty-allevia-tion program of the DA, jointlyfunded by the World Bank andthe national and participatinglocal governments.

It is currently implemented in225 poor farming and fishingmunicipalities in 27 provincesin all six regions of Mindanao.

The program has four majorcomponents: rural infrstructure(RI), community fund for agri-cultural development (CFAD),natural resources manage-ment (NRM), and investmentfor government reforms andprogram administration(IPGPA).

It seeks to raise rural in-comes and achieve food secu-rity through setting up ofneeded infrastructure, liveli-hood enterprises, andbiodiversity conservation

DA-MRDP2 investson human resources

projects.Alongside poverty-reducing

initiatives, the Program like-wise reinforces the implemen-tation of the Local GovernmentCode and Agricultural Fisher-ies Modernization Act.

Parawan said DA-MRDP2encourages participatingLGUs to take advantage of thepackage of investments andprojects that the program of-fers.

In turn, they should providerespective counterparts tobring a sense of ownership ofthe projects, and at the samepromote the program’s corevalues of participation and ac-countability.

For his part, Region 9 Tech-nical Director Constancio G.Alama, who also serves asMRDP2 Regional ProgramCoordinator, said responsibili-ties of players should be un-derstood for them to give theirfull commitment in projectimplementation.

“Participation and comple-mentation of knowledge willgive stakeholders a sense ofbelonging and ownership oftask,” he added.

In Zamboanga Peninsula,MRDP2 covers the cities ofZamboanga and Isabela, and28 municipalities in the prov-inces of Zamboanga del Sur,Zamboanga del Norte andZamboanga Sibugay.

To date, under CFAD, Re-gion 9 has 86 sub-projectsamounting to P20 million, 66of which were implementedduring MRDP1.

For rural infrastructure, 13farm-to-market road (FMR)projects are implemented, witha total length of 64.31 kilome-ters, worth P102.87 million.

Two FMRs are already com-pleted: in Tigbao (1.9 km) andin Vincenso Sagun (2.72 km),both in Zamboanga del Sur,amounting to P7.84 million.The rest are ongoing.

Construction of potable wa-ter system projects are alsoongoing at V. Sagun and RTLim in Zamboanga Sibugay,amounting to P38.2 million.(Melba B. Wee, DA9 Info Div.)

DA7 hosts AFMIS national assessmentThe DA’s Agriculture and Fish-

eries Market Information System(AFMIS) shifts to a higher level withthe integration of information tech-nology (IT) in disseminating fast,reliable, accurate and relevantmarket data and information.

This was the main agenda dur-ing the recently concluded nationalAFMIS workshop, held June 1 to4, 2010, in Bohol, attented by na-tional representatives of concernedDA agencies, collectively known asMarket Development Cluster(MDC).

The MDC is composed of theAgribusiness and Marketing Assis-tance Service (AMAS), InformationTechnology Center for Agricultureand Fisheries (ITCAF), Agricultureand Fisheries Information Service(AFIS), Bureau of Agricultural Sta-tistics (BAS) and the National Ag-ricultural and Fishery Council(NAFC).

The MDC representatives metwith their counterparts in the fourfocus regions: Cordillera, Centraland Western Visayas, and North-ern Mindanao.

Together, they reviewed and im-proved on the implementation ofvarious AFMIS activities, and drewup plans for the launch of the DA-NOKIA Mobile Data Gathering So-lution (MDGS) during the DA 112thanniversary celebration, June 23,2010, at DA-BSWM convention

DA8 sets up 18 greenhouses

hall.DA Assistant Secretary and

BAS Dir. Romeo Recide intro-duced to the regional teams theMDGS, which aims to realize anefficient, integrated IT and cluster-based system of collecting, pro-cessing, packaging and analyzingmarket information for dissemina-tion on a timely and regular basisto target clients through variousmedia.

With MDGS, using a mobilephone (NOKIA E series) serving asthe main tool for transmitting data,it hopes to enhance fast data trans-fers from remote locations andobtain greater data accuracy andsecurity.

The DA has commissionedWoodfields Consultants, Inc. toprovide technical guidance in theimplementation of AFMIS.

The MDGS is primarily envi-sioned to facilitate an effective sys-tem for price monitoring, crop dam-age reporting and inventory duringtyphoons and calamities.

It can also be used for humanhealth disease isolation, monitor-ing, and vaccination; ports secu-rity; disaster and natural calamitystatus data and monitoring; censusgathering and elections monitor-ing. (Grace Dagala, DA-RFU7 InfoDiv.)

“The best way and time tohedge against the adverse effectof climate change is to act on itbefore it happens.”

Thus said Department of Agri-culture Region 8 Executive Direc-tor Leo P. Cañeda, noting the DAhas to date put up 18 green-houses in Eastern Visayas, and33 more are slated to be awardedto qualified LGUs.

With the use of greenhouses,he said the adverse effects of glo-bal warming are tempered, sta-bilizing production and minimiz-ing crop losses.

Cañeda noted that greenhouseliterally serves as a ‘roofing’ de-vice to overcome weatherchanges and modifies natural en-vironmental components, such astemperature, humidity, light andcarbon dioxide to allow the plantto attain its optimum growth.

In putting up a greenhouse, DAshoulders P180,000 for the shel-ter, complete with drip irrigation.It also conducts among farmer-beneficiaries a 10-week training

on greenhouse management andvegetable production.

The participating farmers areidentified by their respectiveLGUs, who subsequently man-age and maintain the green-houses.

As its counterpart, the LGUprovides the project site, of atleast 1,000 square meters, witha good water source. (DA-RFU 8Info Div.)

"Agriculture, for an

honorable and high-

minded man," says

Xenophon, "is the

best of all occupations

and arts by which

men procure the

means of living."

- Amos Bronson Alcott

10

El Niño has small impact onworld rice output-FAO

Japan-The government hasdecided to apply its geneticallymodified (GM) food labeling rulesto papayas, opening the way forthe import of modified papayasas early as this summer.

The fruit would be the first GMfood meant for raw consumptionto be allowed distribution in Ja-pan.

The decision by the CabinetOffice committee for consumeraffairs clears the way for the Min-istry of Health, Labor and Wel-fare to recognize the GM papa-yas for import and distributionunder the Food Sanitation Actonce the plan passes a publicinput phase.

The decision applies specifi-

A drought in parts of Asia isnot having much of an impacton the rice crop, and world ricetrade should be in balancesoon, a senior official from theFood and Agriculture Organiza-tion (FAO) said.

Output this year is expectedto be 707 million tonnes ofpaddy, slightly down from aforecast of 710 million tonnesmade in April, HiroyukiKonuma, the FAO regional rep-resentative for Asia and thePacific, told Reuters.

‘’We have no problem thisyear,’’ he said.

Severe drought caused bythe El Niño weather phenom-enon was dissipating and theaffected areas were limited,mostly to the Mekong river sub-region and the Philippines, andany impact would be offset byan overall positive outlook inAsia and Africa.

Rice production in China andIndia was forecast to rise by 2percent and 13 percent respec-tively, mainly because of amplerain, Konuma said.

This year’s expected 707 mil-lion tonnes of paddy, up from682 million tonnes in 2009,would be equal to 456 milliontonnes of milled rice andslightly higher than expectedworld consumption of 454 mil-lion tonnes, he said.

‘’Production is close to utili-zation, which is good,’’ Konumasaid.

The FAO estimated overall

global rice stocks of 123.5 mil-lion tonnes, compared with123.0 million tonnes last year.

Overall rice stocks in majorexporting countries declined to24.8 million tonnes, from 32.9million tonnes the previousyear, resulting in falling worldrice trade, he said.

The 2010 world rice tradewas expected to drop to 30.0million tonnes, down from 31.3million tonnes forecast in April.

‘’We assume it will not cre-ate a major problem as whathappened in 2007 when riceprices went very high, becausein 2007 it was a combinationof low stocks of wheat and riceboth together,’’ Konuma said.

In 2007, rice stocks in ex-porting countries dropped be-low 20 million tonnes when In-dia, which used to rank as theworld’s number two rice ex-porter, faced a productionshortfall, forcing it to ban ex-ports.

The Indian export ban meantabout 4 million tonnes of ricedid not come onto the market,sparking fears of shortagesacross the world which pushedthe price of benchmark 100percent B grade white rice to arecord high of $1,080 a tonnein early 2008.

The price has fallen nearly60 percent to $450 a tonne onThursday on thin demand, andrising supply in major produc-ing countries. (Manila Bulletin)

GeneticallGeneticallGeneticallGeneticallGenetically engineery engineery engineery engineery engineered paed paed paed paed papapapapapayyyyyas to hitas to hitas to hitas to hitas to hitstorstorstorstorstore shelve shelve shelve shelve shelves as eares as eares as eares as eares as earllllly as summery as summery as summery as summery as summer

New sub1 rice lines developedin less time

PHILRICE, Nueva Ecija—ThePhilippine Rice Research Insti-tute (PhilRice) and the Interna-tional Rice Research Institute(IRRI) have developed the riceline PSB Rc82-Sub1 throughmarker-assisted breeding ap-proach that makes the transferof submergence-tolerant gene(sub1) significantly less time-con-suming.

Rice breeding typically takeseight to 11 years to complete.

Loida Perez, lead author of thepaper titled “PSB Rc82-Sub1: ANew Submergence Tolerant RiceCultivar Developed ThroughMarker-Assisted Breeding,” saidthat DNA marker-assisted breed-ing is estimated to save at leastthree to six years in the breedingprocess.

She explained that DNA mark-ers are “landmarks that pointplant breeders to a specific re-gion of interest in the chromo-some, thereby lessening the pro-cess.”

“With the strong partnership ofscientists between PhilRice andIRRI and funding from Japan’sMinistry of Foreign Affairsthrough the IRRI-Japan Submer-gence Tolerance Project of Dr.David J. Mackill, we have em-barked on the project of transfer-ring the sub1 from NSIC Rc194(IR64-Sub1) into PSB Rc82, apopular and high-yielding irri-gated rice cultivar with knownresistance to major rice pests anddiseases,” she said.

PhilRice and IRRI identifiedfour PSB Rc82-Sub1 materials.

Initial morpho-agronomic traitssuch as grain quality revealedthat the improved PSB Rc82-

Sub1 materials were comparableto the original PSB Rc82 (non-sub1).

All four lines had fixed sub1and were established in 2010 dryseason at PhilRice Central Ex-periment Station to determineyield and yield-related param-eters and to produce seed forevaluation and promotion in sub-mergence or flash flood-proneareas in the country.

The paper discussed that sub1is responsible for submergencetolerance in rice at vegetativestage for up to two weeks.

From Indian rice varietyFR13A, it was successfully trans-ferred to IR64 via marker-as-sisted breeding at IRRI produc-ing IR64-Sub1, which was re-cently registered as commercialvariety by the National Seed In-dustry Council of the Philippinesas NSIC Rc194 with a local name“Submarino 1” for the flood-proneecosystems in the country.

With the release of Submarino1, however, Perez said research-ers continued to develop otherlines or varieties with submer-gence tolerance such as the PSBRc82-Sub1 for farmers to haveoptions on the variety to use inpest and disease-stricken rain-fed areas in the country.

Submergence or flash flood-prone rice areas in the Philip-pines are estimated at around300,000 hectares.

In addition to damage broughtby typhoons and floods in low-land farms, rice farming produc-tivity is very low in these areasbecause farmers there plant riceonly once a year. (IRRI)

cally to papayas genetically al-tered for resistance to harmfulviruses. The modified fruit is nowbeing grown in Hawaii, and hasbeen on sale in the United Statessince May 1999. Japan's FoodSafety Commission ruled in Julylast year that the papayas did notpresent a health risk. If the fruitgo on sale in Japan, they mustcarry a label stating they are GMproducts.

There are currently sevenfresh and 32 processed GMfoods approved for import to Ja-pan, though most are ingredientsfor processed goods or animalfodder, and are not marketed asfood for raw consumption byhumans. (SEARCA)

June 2010

DA turns 112 ... (from p1)

with the following highlights:• Welcome remarks by Ass’t.

Sec. Clayton Olalia;• Renewal of pledge on DA

Mission / Vision, led byUndersecretary Joel Rudinas;

• Awarding of loyalty plaquesto DA family employees (whorendered 20, 25, 30, 35 and 40years of service);

• Recognition of DA-OSECemployees who regularly donateblood to the National KidneyTransplant Institute;

• Launch of DA-AFMIS andNokia Mobile Data GatheringSolution; and ‘Online ImportApplication, Processing andApproval of Permit;’

• Presentation of OIECertificate to the Philippines,declaring parts of Luzon as FMD-free;

• Awarding of top salesperformers of DA AgribusinessExport Showroom; and

• Keynote Speech of SecFondevilla.

Exhibition basketball andvolleyball games were held atthe DA gym, from 2-4 pm; and 5pm, cocktails, wine-tasting andflairtending of tropical wines atthe DA lobby.

The anniversary celebrationstarted Monday, June 21, withthe distribution and feeding ofdairy milk and ‘malunggay lugaw’and ‘malunggay’ and ‘saluyot’ icecream to dozens of elementaryschoolchildren. The milk wasprovided by the DA’s NationalDairy Authority, while the‘malunggay lugaw’ and icecream were sponsored by theDA’s Bureau of Plant Industry.

There was also a week-long‘tiangge’ at the DA parking lot.

The National Economic andDevelopment Authority (NEDA)underscored the importance ofagriculture in the sustainability ofemployment opportunities--asemployment in April 2010 inchedup by 1.2 percent from last yearand unemployment rate in-creased, even alongside electionspending and global economicrecovery.

Acting NEDA Director-GeneralAugusto B. Santos said with theincreasing concerns on climatechange, there is a need to em-ploy strategies to mitigate nega-tive effects.

"With the end of the El Niñoepisode and the increasing pos-sibility of a transition to La Niñain the second half of 2010, thereis a need to implement disasterrisk management strategies andother precautionary measuresagainst floods and rain-inducedlandslides in hazard prone areasin order to mitigate as well as pre-vent any further adverse effectsof natural disasters on thecountry's economy, especially inagriculture and employment," hesaid.

The El Niño dry spell damp-ened employment, resulting intotal employment of almost 35.4million in April from 35 million lastyear. The unemployment ratemeanwhile rose 8.0 percent from7.5 percent for a total of 3.1 mil-lion in April 2010, according to theresults of the latest Labor ForceSurvey.

"Workers in the agriculture,fishery and forestry sectors de-creased by 6.5 percent as the in-tensifying El Niño took its toll onemployment in the sector,"Santos added.

The agriculture, hunting andforestry, and fishing subsectorssuffered net employment lossesof 771,000 and 31,000, respec-tively.

He also noted that the govern-ment must increasingly prioritizethe implementation of the neces-sary policies and programs thatsupport the creation of decentand quality employment. "Poli-cies and programs to sustain aneconomic environment that, inturn, encourages more resourcesfor physical and human capital in-vestment should be in place,"Santos said.

Moreover, he said that greaterteam-up, partnership and col-laboration with the private sector

NEDNEDNEDNEDNEDA:A:A:A:A: AgAgAgAgAgriculturriculturriculturriculturriculture is ke is ke is ke is ke is keeeeeyyyyyto sustain emploto sustain emploto sustain emploto sustain emploto sustain employmentymentymentymentyment

to ensure that the education,training, and scholarships ofyoung men and women are notonly attuned to the needs of themarket but would also providethem the appropriate skills andcareer guidance, even for entre-preneurship.

"The government must providethe necessary infrastructure toencourage investments that cre-ate employment, sustain andboost high business and con-sumer confidence and promotea stronger, stable and deeper fi-nancial system," Santos ex-plained. (NEDA)

11

Entire RP ... (from p1)

ince, Region 4-A, NationalCapital Region, and Pangasinanin Region 1.

Zone 3 or south Luzon in-cludes Regions 4-B and 5.

The OIE is expected to act onthe pending application of thePhilippines to declare Zone 2 asFMD-free.

Fondevilla said the total eradi-cation of FMD in the countrywould pave the way to the ex-pansion of the swine industry,and will open up exports of hogsto other countries.

The country has maintained itsFMD-free status for the last 53months, since the last recordedoutbreak on December 28, 2005in Quezon province.

The FMD outbreak that struckthe Philippines in 1995 had

Agriculture Secretary Bernie Fondevilla (right) proudly shows areplica of the Office International des Epizooties (OIE) Certifi-cate declaring parts of Luzon as Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD)free zones, during the 112th DA Anniversary celebration, June 23,2010, at the DA-BSWM Convention Hall in Quezon City. Assistinghim is DA-Bureau of Animal Industry Director Efren Nuestro, whileBAI mascot ‘Super Pig’ looks on.

develop 1,799,361 hectares ofidle lands into various productiveagribusiness uses from 2005 to2009, on top of creating a total of4.4 million jobs.

He said these achievementshave met the MTPDP’s goal of“developing at least two millionhectares of new lands foragribusiness in order to contributetwo million out of the 10 millionjobs targeted as a legacy by2010.”

On the President’s MTPDP’sgoal of “making food plentiful atcompetitive prices,” Fondevillasaid the DA was able to establishalternative market outlets like 543Barangay Bagsakans (BBs) and82 Bagsakan Centers (BCs) to

PGMA delivers ... (from p1)

reached epidemic proportionsspreading to 27 provinces, withreported outbreaks of 1,553.

In 1996, the DA created theNational FMD Task Force(NFMDTF) to oversee joint ef-forts in eradicating the disease,composed of four imperatives:dsease monitoring and surveil-lance; public awareness; animalmovement management; andvaccination.

The DA’s sustained efforts inpartnership with commercial andbackyard hog raisers and LGUshas led to the continued declinein FMD outbreaks.

Such favorable developmentpaved the way to the declarationby the OIE of Mindanao as FMD-free without vaccination in 2001,and Visayas, Palawan andMasbate, in 2002.

reduce the cost of consumergoods and provide better incomefor farmers, fisherfolk and otherstakeholders.

The DA also set up 14,581Tindahan Natin outlets that sellbasic food items like rice andnoodles at prices lower than thosein regular retail outlets.

As a result of these initiatives,the average nominal rice prices in2001-2009 were 14% lower thanin 1992-1998.

Likewise, the setting up of BBsand BCs has made it convenientfor consumers to buy basic foodcommodities at affordable prices,at P5 to P20 per kilo cheaperthan those sold in regular wetmarkets.

Agriculture Secretary Bernie Fondevilla (2nd from left) enters apassword into a laptop computer to launch the Nokia Mobile DataGathering Solution (MDGS) during the DA’s 112th anniversarycelebration. The first in the world, the project will use mobile phonesfor data gathering to provide real-time and accurate agriculturaldata to end-users and clienteles. Witnessing the launch are (fromleft): H.E. Heikki Hannikainen, Ambassador of Finland; Nokiaofficials Greg Elphinston, Nikka Abes, and Simo Hoikka; and DA-ITCAF OIC-director Honorio Flameño.

The Department ofAgriculture, Nokia and the WorldWide Fund for Nature (WWF-Philippines) are pioneering theuse of the Nokia data gatheringsolution in the Philippines,featuring collection and sharingof farm data anytime andanywhere in the country.

DA gets Nokia softwarefor farm data gathering

The DA will distribute NokiaE71 phones to 100 regional fieldofficers, who will report farm con-ditions and prices that wouldhelp the department respondquickly especially when naturaldisaster strikes.

Agriculture Secretary BernieFondevilla said climate changeimpacts, from droughts to ty-phoons, had greatly hamperedgoverment efforts to increasefarm productivity and ensurefood sufficiency.

“The Nokia data gathering so-lution will augment and, eventu-ally replace our data-gatheringsystems so we can concentrateon crafting programs and solu-tions to further boost farm yieldsdespite the erratic weatherpatterns,” Fondevilla said.

“The Philippines is an archi-pelago with over 1,500 munici-palities, most of which are sepa-rated by water.

“Tracking each area’s grainand water distribution, monitor-ing productivity and marketprices pose a huge logisticalchallenge to the DA,” he said.

“Eventually we wish to applythe technology to health, agricul-ture, education, emergency ser-vices, census and so forth. Ourambition is to service all 1,500Philippine municipalities within adecade,”said Nokia Finland’scorporate social investment di-rector Greg Elphinston. (Phil.Daily Inquirer)

Malabanan attributed the in-crease in rice production in thepast nine years to thegovernment’s support for thehybrid-rice program.

Rice production, he noted,grew at an average of close to 3percent annually since 2001.

“That is why we hope that the[next administration] will con-tinue providing support to ricefarmers to encourage them touse rice technologies that seekto increase yield,” he said.

By 2013, the DA under its‘Rice Master Plan’ targets to pro-duce 21.6 MMT of palay throughthe continued provision of seedsubsidy, promotion of sturdyseeds that could withstand flood,drought and saline soils, andother production inputs andpostharvest facilities.

By 2013, estimated nationaldemand for palay is placed at21.54 MMT, factoring in a 2-per-cent annual increase in popula-tion.

Last year, the Philippines’ self-sufficiency level was pegged at81 percent. The productionshortfall was filled in by importedrice. (Business Mirror)

SEARSEARSEARSEARSEARCA studCA studCA studCA studCA study shoy shoy shoy shoy showswswswswsFIELDS benefFIELDS benefFIELDS benefFIELDS benefFIELDS benefited fited fited fited fited farararararmermermermermersssss

President Arroyo’s centerpieceagriculture program, dubbed asFIELDS, benefits farmers interms of higher yields, lower pro-duction losses and increasedprofits.

Thus, is the finding of the LosBaños-based Southeast AsianRegional Center for GraduateStudy and Research in Agricul-ture (SEARCA).

“The farmers said the benefitsinclude the tangible increases inthe family’s net profit and the non-tangible capacity enhancement inthe farming systems,” saidSEARCA in its study.

Launched in April 2008,FIELDS stands for government’ssix major interventions to in-crease farm productivity andfarmers’ incomes: fertilizer, irriga-tion and other rural infrastructure,extension and education ser-vices, loans, dryers and otherpostharvest facilities, and seedsand other genetic materials.

Agriculture Secretary BernieFondevilla said “the outcome ofthe SEARCA study proves thatthe Arroyo government has,through FIELDS, delivered on itscommitment to the farm sector.

In the province of Albay, for in-stance, the SEARCA studyshowed that the net income offarmers increased by P20,528per hectare for one cropping.

Another impact assessmentdone for the Community-basedParticipatory Action Research(CPAR) program of the DA’s Bu-reau of Agricultural Researchshowed that average incomes offarmer-cooperators increased by45 percent compared with farm-ers in non-CPAR areas.

From P18,313 per hectare, theaverage incomes of CPAR farm-

RP has enough rice for 2010The Philippines has more

than enough rice to meet itsneeds until the end of 2010.

National Food Authority(NFA) Administrator Jessup P.Navarro said the current totalnational inventory stands at3.56 million (M) metric tons,two million of which or 56% oftotal inventory is in NFAwarehouses.

Also, he said rice pricesremain stable, with regular-milled rice ranging from P30.65to P31.18 per kilo, and P34.20to P34.59 per kilo for well-milled

rice, from January to June2010.

The Philippines hasimported a total of 2.495million tons of rice for 2010.This includes 2.475 milliontons through NFA tenders andprivate sector importation, aswell as 20,000 tons ofpremium rice importationthrough the PhilippineInternational Trade Corp.

This year ’s importationexceeded the 1.775 milliontons recorded in 2009, and the2.4 million tons in 2008. (Phil.Daily Inquirer)

Hybrid riceprogram should

continueThe Aquino administration

should continue to implementthe hybrid rice program to makethe Philippines self-sufficient inrice and save on imports.

This was suggested by Dr.Frisco Malabanan, director ofthe DA’s GinintuangMasaganang Ani (GMA) riceprogram, noting that govern-ment could save as much asP9.41 billion in rice imports in2011 if the hybrid rice programis continuously implemented.

The initiative would be able toproduce an additional 2.6 million(M) metric tons (MT) from aplanned hectarage of about605,450 hectares in 2011.

“For just an investment ofP1.77 billion, the governmentcould save around P8 billion inrice imports by 2011,”Malabanan told reporters in arecent briefing in Quezon City.

In 2009, out of the total na-tional palay production of 16.26MMT, hybrid rice accounted for1.18 MMT or 7.3%.

ers in Cagayan, Calabarzon andNorthern Mindanao regions al-most doubled to P33,482 perhectare.

“The increases in average in-come accrued not only from theincrease in profitability, but alsofrom decreases in total produc-tion costs, ranging from 14 to 59percent per hectare due to theuse of cost-reducing technolo-gies,” SEARCA said.