Agriculture

By Rose de la Cruz Now that bleeding Lepanto Consolidated Mining Corp. has lost its partner– Gold Fields– for its Far Southeast Gold REsources Inc. (FSGRI) project in Mankayan, Benguet and its uncertainty of obtaining the Free and Prior Informal Consent (FPIC) of the Mankayan Indigenous People to renew its expired Mineral Production Sharing Agreement (in 2015)– what would be …

By Rose de la Cruz Sugar producers under the Confederation of Sugar Producers Associations Inc. said there was no need to import sugar this year as inventories are sufficient to last until the start of milling season late this year.  This after the Department of Agriculture bared last week that it is allowing 200,000 metric tons of sugar to be …

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. ordered everyone at the DA Central and field offices to redouble their efforts in restoring the affected enterprises and recover the nation’s losses from the tailend of the world’s most challenging climate disaster, El Nino.  He barked this order last July 1 during the observance of the 36th National Disaster Resilience Month with theme …

The government must prepare for an expected surge in imported rice following the reduction of tariffs from 35 to 15 percent so that it would not result in further decline in rice self-sufficiency amid climate change threats and global geopolitical disruptions, industry stakeholders said.  Danilo V. Fausto, president of the Philippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food, raised the group’s grave …

By Rose de la Cruz The benefit of reducing tariffs on rice and other food items from 35 to 15 percent until 2028 is not expected by many in the agriculture sector to reduce prices of these items in the local market but would only redound to the importers and their business interests. There is also speculation that the expected …

The government must prepare for an expected surge in imported rice following the reduction of tariffs from 35 to 15 percent so that it would not result in further decline in rice self-sufficiency amid climate change threats and global geopolitical disruptions, industry stakeholders said. Danilo V. Fausto, president of the  Philippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food,  raised the group’s grave …

By Rose de la Cruz Sugar producers under the Confederation of Sugar Producers Associations Inc. said there was no need to import sugar this year as inventories are sufficient to last until the start of milling season late this year. This after the Department of Agriculture bared last week that it is allowing 200,000 metric tons of sugar to be …

By Rose de la Cruz Election is certainly just around the corner because programs supposedly supporting the lowly— those in the poverty line (from wages inadequate to feed their families), senior citizens, the disabled and solo parents and, ultimately the indigenous people (IPs) or  the first ones to lose their properties in the name of progress– are being launched months …

A proposal to construct a farm-to-market railway along the existing rail line of the Philippine National Railway (PNR) is now being evaluated by the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Center after both Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista and Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel, Jr. expressed support to the project. Once the PPP Center is done in its evaluation, the project will be endorsed …

The Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Department of Health (DOH), and their attached agencies, the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have agreed to allow BAI to assist the FDA in conducting testing on animal vaccines and biologics. In a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) among the agencies signed on June 4, 2024, the …