Agriculture

In keeping with one of the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations to “end hunger, to achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture” with aquaculture of farming aquatic plants and animals like fish and seaweeds, the UP Diliman College of Science is developing sustainable management approaches for emerging aquaculture species through continued monitoring and conservation efforts …

Biologist and Balik Scientist Dr. Nikki Heherson Dagamac is on a mission to assess and monitor the elusive tamaraw (Bubalus mindorensis) in Mindoro to protect it from extinction. Through Project MATAPAT (or Multidisciplinary Approaches for Tamaraw Protection against Threats), he seeks to assess the current status of tamaraw in Mt. Calavite Wildlife Sanctuary (MCWS) and identify priority areas of conservation …

Meat imports grew by 11.3 percent or 397 million kilos during the first four months of 2024 as importers anticipate higher global prices, a weaker peso, and lower hog production due to El Niño. Data from the Bureau of Animal Industry showed that meat importation from January to April this year surpassed by 41 million kilos the 356 million kilos …

By Rose de la Cruz Palay farmers definitely had it good last May when farmgate prices (or some call it producers’ prices) rose 30.2 percent to P24.81 per kilogram, based on data from the Philippine Statistics Authority. They deserve every bit of that increase because they were the ones that tilled and took care of the crop during the severe …

By Rose de la Cruz Indigenous People (or our katutubo) are usually those who live in the hinterlands– far from everyone’s reach– such that they are excluded from our technology, our (foreign-acquired) culture and tastes, our churches and schools and from everything else. As such, they do not enjoy what we consider basic necessities because theirs is far from basic– …

The Department of Agriculture through the Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Service (AMAS) is hosting on June 6, 2024 the Young Farmers Challenge (YFC) Program Kick-Off, National Awarding Ceremony 2023, and Business Development Services on June 6, 2024, at the Rice Biotechnology Center (CBC), PhilRice, Muñoz, Nueva Ecija. The event is the culmination of a ladderized competition from the provincial to …

An agency under the NEDA– the Public Private Partnership Center– and the Agence Francaise de Developpement (AFD) completed a two-day hybrid workshop entitled “Integrating Climate Change Considerations and Disaster Risk Resilience in PPP Projects” last May 27 and 28 at the Center’s Board room and via Zoom. The objective of the activity is to foster understanding and assist national and …

Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo Loyzaga is optimistic over the effective implementation of the Philippine Ecosystem and Natural Capital Accounting System (PENCAS) Act with the launch of the “Sukat ng Kalikasan” (SnK) framework and toolkit during the International Day for Biological Diversity last May 22. The PENCAS law will serve as a tool for determining the …

Amid the devastating impact of El Niño on local harvests, Land Bank of the Philippines (LANDBANK) remains aggressive in extending financial support to rice farmers as total loans released through the Expanded Rice Credit Assistance under the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (ERCA-RCEF) reached P2.5 billion as of 30 April 2024.  In partnership with Department of Agriculture (DA), LANDBANK has been …

By Rose de la Cruz What else is new? We’ve known it all along– the  agriculture, forestry and fishery sectors– are now haunted by lack of skilled workers. The Philippine Statistics Authority said majority of job vacancies in these sectors are considered hard-to-fill jobs based on the latest Integrated Survey on Labor and Employment (ISLE), which shows that 78.4 percent …