Agriculture

By Rose de la Cruz Despite efforts to discredit the health benefits of coconut oil,  the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) and Japan-based Manryu Co. Ltd. will continue to explore  the use of coconut oil as primary feedstock in the production of sustainable aviation fuel. A memorandum of understanding (MOU)  between the PCA – an attached agency of the Department of …

The country’s milk output for 2024 will hit 32,000 metric tons owing to increasing number of dairy animals, according  to the latest US Department of Agriculture report.. “Production will recover at the level of 32,000 MT [metric tons] in 2024 attributed to the increasing number of dairy animals,” according to USDA  report published by Business Mirror. The USDA also projected …

The Philippines and Lao People’s Democratic Republic (PDR) are looking at establishing a joint genetic bank for rice development in their bid to promote innovation in crop cultivation. A Memorandum of Understanding would be signed between Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. and Lao PDR Agriculture and Forestry Minister Linkham Douangsavanh next year, Business Mirror reported. “The proposed agreement marks …

Nestle Philippines recently launched initiatives aimed at increasing the adoption of regenerative farming among local smallholder robusta farmers to increase their production and income. Through a partnership with the Department of Agriculture–Agricultural Training Institute (DA-ATI), and the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), Nestle introduced an online certificate course and a crop calendar tailored for coffee farmers under its Project …

The  Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), an attached agency of the Department of Agriculture (DA), has partnered with regulatory technology firm FMC Research Solutions Inc. to improve the safety and quality of imported agricultural products.  BPI signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with FMC Research to initiate a pilot test program that seeks to boost the agency’s quarantine capabilities. “The …

By Rose de la Cruz Although food wastage in the Philippines has sharply dropped to 3 million metric tons based on estimates of the UN Environment Programme report, it is still staggeringly high considering the rising poverty and food inadequacy being experienced by Filipinos. Food wastage could come at the farm level, processing plants, retail outlets and even households through …

The National Dairy Authority, an agency under the Department of Agriculture, is seeking a raise   in its  annual budget  of  P500 million, to enable it to increase its production  and  meet at least five  percent of the country’s milk requirement, now addressed mostly by imported processed milk product brands. NDA Administrator Marcus Antonius Andaya said improving the  country’s milk …

By Rose de la Cruz Licensed Aeronautical Engineer Mark Kennedy Bantugon  acknowledged and thanked the Department of Science and Technology  (DOST)  in his adventures and triumphs in developing a billion dollar aviation sealant using pili as a base ingredient. At the opening of the National Youth Science, Technology, and Innovation Festival (NYSTIF), at the PICC Forum Tent, Bantugon. shared how …

By the year 2050, water shortages are to be experienced all over the world because of increasing population, which in turn causes specific problem in the agriculture sector which uses 82 percent of freshwater for crops. Dr. Sylvester A. Badua, an associate professor at Central Luzon State University (CLSU), raised this concern during his lecture on automated fertigation systems during …

By Rose de la Cruz Since Executive Order No. 62 failed to reduce retail prices for rice, pork and other food commodities even at reduced tariffs from 35 to 15 percent last July until 2028, rice and hog farmers’ groups are asking the government to revert to the old tariff rate of 35 percent, to better protect farmers since revenues …