With the various thrusts of the administration of Governor Lilia G. Pineda, agriculture remains a top priority.
This, according to Crispin Guintu, head of the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA), because the governor believes that Pampanga still has substantial agricultural resources which if tapped properly, can provide food security for the province.
In its report on the governor’s first year in office, the OPA listed its accomplishments, first of which was in the field of training and research development.
“For the locally funded projects, we established two demo trials: the Modified Rice-Fish-Vegetable Farming System and Technology Verification on the Use of Organic Fertilizer in Slightly Zinc-Deficient Areas in Pampanga, which had 13 farmer-recipients/cooperators from the municipalities of Magalang, Porac, Arayat, Mexico, Sta. Ana and the City of San Fernando.”
For the national-funded projects, Guintu disclosed there were two with component technologies one of which uses Community-based Participatory Action Research on Rice+ Off Season Vegetable Production while the other is Technology Demonstration on Integrated Farmers Field School in the different districts of Pampanga.
In its Agri-Business Program, the OPA technicians conducted weekly monitoring of basic commodities in four (4) market centers in the cities of Angeles and San Fernando and the towns of Guagua and Apalit and in other 14 Bagsakan centers.
Under the provincial government’s Bamboo Development Project which was reconstituted and the technical working group (TWG) of which OPA is a member, 23 sites were validated and memoranda of agreement (MOA) were signed among the parties involved.
“Some 2,475 propagules were planted in Lubao and 1,200 more are to be planted,” Guintu added.
Its Fishery Program included the following activities: productivity enhancement program in aquaculture, through technical assistance on brackish water fishpond for 29 fishpond cooperators; water quality analysis with the help of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR); provision of fishing gears for 10 recipients in Lubao; provision of live tilapia marketing box to cooperator in Apalit; inspection of reported fishkill in Bacolor fishpond; supervision of dispersal of saline tilapia fingerlings in coastal municipalities through BFAR; monitoring of the provincial tilapia hatchery at the Pampanga Agricultural College (PAC) in Magalang; and participation in the National Consultative Workshop in the amendments on Fisheries Administrative Order 210.
Under the Rice Production Program, Guintu said that some 12,500 certified seeds were distributed, benefiting 8,767 farmers.
“There is also a newly established area for hybrid rice production in Barangay Concepcion, Bacolor town which was given technical assistance to successfully correct growth abnormalities in the newly planted rice.”
In its Corn Production Program, the OPA, under the Department of Agriculture’s 50/50 scheme, provided 93 shallow tube wells (STWs) in nine (9) municipalities. Under this scheme, the farmer-recipients paid the amount of P26,030 as their counterpart which included the insurance of the unit and miscellaneous expenses.
The office also extended technical assistance to areas planted with yellow corn, green corn and cassava involving 3,613.29 hectares.
For the production of high value commercial crops, Guintu reported that the following were provided: 200 pieces of plastic crates were given to 42 recipients to be used as containers of their harvest; 100 bottles of fertilizer given to 28 cooperators; and plastic mulch distributed to 19 farmers for the production of fruits and vegetables; and supervised, monitored, evaluated and documented the assorted seeds distributed to farmers and backyard producers in the province. (Pampanga PIO)
