Philippine Information Agency Central Visayas

  The winners of the Young Farmers Challenge 2024 pose for a photo together with the Department of Agriculture 7 officials. (RGC/PIA7 Cebu) C EBU CITY, Cebu (PIA) — The Department of Agriculture in Central Visayas is encouraging young entrepreneurs to engage in agriculture and fishery businesses. This as DA noted that the demand for farmers has increased while the number of Filipinos going into farming is decreasing. “As we can see, the demand for farmers has increased. So, we can see that our farmers are moving away from their farms because they want to go to the city or other places to farm,” said DA-7 Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Division chief Aurea M. Madrio. Madrio said the average age of farmers in the country is 54 years old, which shows the aging population of farmers and the need to encourage more people, especially the youth, to go into the agri-fishery sector. He said young Filipinos can spearhead entrepreneurial initiatives and transform their business ideas i...

  Deonesia Manubag of the City of Naga, Cebu, bought P20-per-kilo of rice on the city’s first day of selling the affordable rice under the “Benteng Bigas Meron Na! (BBM Na!)” program. (PIA7) CEBU CITY, Cebu (PIA) – The City of Naga is eyeing to sustain the P20/kilo rice program initiated by the national government by subsidizing the cost of 10 kilos of rice per month for each family in their area. City of Naga Mayor Valdemar Chiong said they aim to sustain the program for the 50,000 target families in the city. “I just hope, mangita mi’g paagi og di gane ni ma-sustain in 2 months, we will be writing the Office of the President na we will do the subsidy but the intention there is ang rice nga among pang ibaligya, ang kaya namo is 10 kilos every month for the targeted families,”  Chiong said. (We will look for ways for this program to be sustained. If this cannot be sustained in 2 months, we will write to the Office of the President that we will cover the subsidy, but we can onl...

  MANILA (PIA) -- Ang nasud adunay igong suplay sa bugas taliwala sa nagpadayon nga  El Niño phenomenon  nga nakaapekto sa lokal nga produksiyon, gipasalig sa  Department of Agriculture (DA)  niadtong Sabado, Marso 2. Sa usa ka  news forum,  ang tigpamaba sa  DA ug Assistant Secretary nga si Arnel De Mesa  miingon nga adunay  "healthy stock and inventory"  sa bugas alang karong tuiga uban ang pag-import sa bugas nga nagsuporta sa lokal nga produksiyon. Si De Mesa niingon nga ang  Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI)  nitaho nga ang nasud nakadawat og kapin sa 600,000 metriko tonelada nga  imported  nga bugas sa unang duha ka buwan sa 2024. “On an average that’s about 300,000 metric tons which is at par doon sa expected natin na 300,000 metric tons per month na darating na bigas na imported. Iyong ating production last year na 20.06 million metric tons plus itong ating mga imports, and we are expecting na magpi-peak iyo...

  TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol, April 15 (PIA) -- The scrimp in feeds resulting from the total ban in feeds and raw materials from entering Bohol is slowly affecting the market price for pork and reducing the number of hog growers provincewide. Still, the over-all hog production of the province is 254%, higher than the region’s biggest producer. This is according to Provincial veterinarian Stella Marie Lapiz, who spoke before information officers during the African Swine Fever (ASF) briefing held at the Bohol Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) Session hall on April 14. The briefing also aimed to enlist the information officers network in Bohol as additional information multipliers in helping keep watch in Bohol’s porous borders from potential incursion and smuggling of pork, pork products and live pigs from Cebu and neighboring provinces tagged with the ASF. With the hog disease confirmed by the Department of Agriculture in Cebu, Bohol has intensified its border watch and control by enlisting...

  CORTES, Bohol, March 19 (PIA) -- Faced with mounting rental on fishpond leases, plus permits and licenses, fish producers in Bohol has asked the governor to mediate between them and the Department of Agriculture  (DA) for a three-year moratorium on payments. This, they think, should allow them enough time and resources to rehabilitate and fix their fishponds and production facilities damaged by typhoon Odette.  But for the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) led by Vice Gov. Dionisio Victor Balite, a five-year moratorium would be fitting to allow the fishers to fully recover and stabilize the local fish supply. In a letter to Bohol Gov. Erico Aristotle Aumentado, Bohol Fish Producers’ Cooperative through its secretary Crestito Garcia asked the governor to represent them to the secretary of the DA. According to Assistant Provincial Agriculturist Larry Pamugas, Odette damaged a total of 996 hectares of fishponds, fish cages, and fish production facilities including the cooperat...

  Dr. Zeam Voltair Amper of the Department of Agriculture Region 7 during the Kapihan sa PIA on Feb. 22, 2023. (PIA7) - CEBU CITY, Cebu, Feb. 22 (PIA) -- The Farm and Fisheries Clustering and Consolidation Program (F2C2) of the Department of Agriculture aims to improve the lives of farmers and fisherfolks. It aims to address problems of the agriculture and fishing sector such as the lack of access to credit and capital, modern farming and fishery methods, farm mechanization, postharvest and processing facilities, markets, infrastructure, transport and logistics, packaging support, and information and communication technologies. The Cluster Development Plan(CDP) is the masterplan for the growth and development of the cluster through its business enterprise. It is a comprehensive, long-term plan that addresses the clusters’ needs for marketing; improvement in productivity, operation, and organization development; financing; and sustainability. Clustering of farmers and fishers would ...

  TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol, March 9 (PIA) -- Nakasakmit ang Department of Agriculture (DA),  sa pakig-alayon sa mga partner agencies og 11 ka  container vans  sa gipalusot nga asukar nga nagkantidad og P 27. 3 milyones. Kini subay sa mandu ni Presidente Ferdinand Marcos Jr. pagpalig-n sa kampanya sa  agricultural smuggling, Ang mga kargamento, gipadala ngadto sa usa ka  Consumer Goods Trading  nga gikan sa China, nasakmit human sa sunod sunod nga operasyon nga gipangulohan sa buhaton sa  Assistant Secretary for DA Inspectorate and Enforcement (DA-IE)  ug sa  Manila International Container Port (MICP). Sa  anti- smuggling operations , ang DA-IE nakigtambayayong sa  Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), Bureau of Customs (BOC), DA-Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), ug sa Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA). Niadtong Pebrero 6, ilang gisusi ang tulo ka  container vans  ug nadiskubrehan ang P7. 44 - milyones nga kantidad sa...

  The heavy farm machineries from DA-7 and PhilMech for nine farmers' associations in Negros Oriental under its RCEF Program. (Photo courtesy of the Provincial Public Information Office) DUMAGUETE CITY, Negros Oriental, March 3 (PIA) -- Nine farmers’ associations in Negros Oriental received farm machineries worth P8.5 million from the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization (PhilMech). Part of the machineries turned over by DA and PhilMech are three units of combined harvesters worth P5.4 million, six units of walk-behind tractors worth P1.90 million, and one unit of riding type transplanter worth P1.2 million. The said farmers’ associations are the Gomentoc Farmers Irrigators’ Association, Polo Asiotes Beneficiaries Farmers Association, Nangka Agrarian Reform Farmers’ Cooperative, Tabuan Ilawod Kalumboyan Farmer Irrigator’s Association, Sandulot Siaton Negros Irrigators’ Association, Kauswagan sa Brgy. Luz Association,...

  CEBU CITY, Cebu Feb. 27 (PIA) -- President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. concluded his first presidential visit in Cebu by leading the distribution of various government assistance in Mandaue City on Feb. 27. Joining the president were officials from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of Agriculture (DA), and Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) who provided different kinds of assistance to the target beneficiaries in the province. DSWD distributed family food packs and financial assistance worth P5,000 to 700 beneficiaries through the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS). The DTI also distributed livelihood kits and vouchers worth P8,000 each to 20 micro-entrepreneurs under the Pangkabuhayan sa Ginhawa at Pagbangon Program (DTI-PPG). Meanwhile, the DA distributed corn, tomato, and eggplant seedlings to 146 farmers from seven farmer associations, while DOLE also gave livelihood grants to 26 worke...

DUMAGUETE CITY, Negros Oriental, June 2 (PIA) -- The Department of Agriculture (DA) Region 7 distributed three forage choppers to cattle raisers while supporting the adaptation of climate-resilient livestock raising in the province. This is to equip livestock producers for producing silage, a climate-resilient technology for livestock raisers, said Livestock Focal Team Voltaire Amper of DA-7.  The forage chopper is a farm implement that has the advantage of shredding forages at a uniform length. The shredded forage is then compacted and stored in airtight conditions to be used as preserved animal feed or silage, said Amper.  DA is currently advocating for silage production to build resiliency for livestock raisers confronted with frequent weather anomalies and natural calamities. Prior to the distribution of the forage choppers, DA-7 conducted a social preparation activity to prepare the members to efficiently operate the machines. The farmers’ associations that are recipients...

UBAY, Bohol, June 1 (PIA) -- The Department of Agriculture (DA) Region 7 delivered the government’s commitment to reduce rice production losses with a modern P51 million disaster-proof monolithic dome rice seed storage facility it built in Bohol. Built inside the a government property dedicated to agriculture development and research, the rice seed storage facility is better than the seven conventional seed storage facilities in the Central Visayas, according to the DA7. The facility uses a dome type of roof, reinforced with iron rebars and polyethylene caulked by airfoam technology that has been designed to withstand 270-kilometer winds. It is built to withstand typhoons, earthquakes, and other natural or man-made calamities including fire, and could potentially safe-keep harvests against calamities as long as it is stowed inside the facility, said Jenelyn Yuson, builder of the multi-million facility. To be built and completed by Dazzling Lite Enterprises after 25 calendar days, the m...

TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol, June 1 (PIA) -- Palobohon sa  Department of Agriculture Region 7  ang P50M nga  monolithic dome  nga maoy himoon nga balay pundohanan ug tipiganan sa mga liso sa humay igtatagod, didto sa  Ubay Stock Farm,  Hunyo 1. Gitukod agi og pagtuban sa suliran sa dali makuha nga de-kalidad nga matang sa igtatagud alang sa mga tigpananum og humay sa Bohol, ang DA -7 nagtutok karon sa pag-himo sa Bohol nga mas kasaligan pa nga sentro sa produksyon sa humay sa  Central Visayas . Ang  monolithic domes  gituyo og pabarug gamit ang pulido nga teknolohiya sa  steel-reinforced concrete  ug  polyurethane foam insulation  nga maoy kabatan sa  airform. Sa iyang desinyo, nasuwayan na kini nga molungtad sa bagyo kay igo lamang modailos ang hangin sa lingon nga atop niini, gawas pa nga dili sudlog sa anay ug mga dangan. Giingon nga barato nga teknolohiya nga misanong sa panginahanglan sa kalikopan, ang  monolithi...

  TAGBILARAN CITY, Bohol, May 18 (PIA) -- Gilagdaan ni Presidente Rodrigo Roa Duterte ang  executive order (EO ) diin gibalik ang  National Irrigation Administration (NIA)  ubos sa kontrol sa  Department of Agriculture (DA). Ang EO 168 nga nagbalhin sa NIA sa DA gikan sa  Office of the President (OP),  gilagdaan ni Pangulong Duterte niadtong Abril 25. “ Due to the effects of climate change and the Covid-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic, which significantly affected the state of food security in the Philippines, there is a need to optimize the country’s water resources to adapt to these challenges, and pave the way for the modernization and industrialization of the agricultural sector,”  nakalatid sa EO. Gitumbok usab sa EO ang panginahanglan nga i-uban ang mga mahinungdanong ahensiya sama sa NIA sa sektor sa agrikultura. Ubos sa EO 168, gimanduan ang  Governance Commission for the Government-Owned or Controlled Corporations (GCG)  ...

  Provincial Veterinarian Dr. Bernardita Tabada (R) assures that her office will help analyze and adopt the protocols and coordinate with private sectors to disseminate the biosecurity measures to the farmers. (MJ Banglos/DA-PATCO) SIQUIJOR, Siquijor, Nov. 17 (PIA) -- Central Visayas and Siquijor province remain free from African Swine Fever (ASF), according to Agricultural Provincial Coordinating Officer Gregolito Bunado during the orientation on biosecurity conducted  by the Provincial Agricultural Technology Coordinating Office (PATCO) Siquijor recently. Bunado attributed the province’s ASF-free status to the measures set by the regional and provincial agriculture offices through the Provincial Veterinary Office as well as the municipal agriculture offices. "I am always in deep gratitude to our partner LGUs for keeping a close watch against ASF and I really hope that we can continue to keep this province ASF-free," Bunado said in his welcome message. To further intensi...