The Department of Agriculture (DA), pushing for higher yields and greater fee-adding for legumes with a purpose to assist increase the competitiveness of farmers cultivating the crop, hosted the primary Luzon Legumes (Peanut, Mungbean and Soybean) Summit on November 19 to 22 in Ilagan, Isabela.

The DA-Office of the Undersecretary for High Value Crops and Rural Credit and the DA-Cagayan Valley (Region 2) office spearheaded the summit that amassed legume farmers and stakeholders to address the industry’s modern troubles and concerns including manufacturing development and crop safety, and interventions to improve the farmers’ manufacturing capacity and competitiveness. The summit contributors also saw the need for a five-year roadmap for the improvement of the home legume industry.

Photo shows a number of the products from legumes that have been exhibited all through the first Luzon Legumes (Peanut, Mungbean and Soybean) Summit on November 19 to 22 in Ilagan, Isabela. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

Trump says no U.S. Casualties in Iran attacks, signaling de-escalation

“Legumes are essential not simplest as a source of food for humans and animals. They provide nutritionally rich crop residues wanted for the improvement and improvement of cropping systems for corn, rice, fruit bushes and other plants,” said Rose Mary Aquino, DA-Cagayan Valley local technical director for studies and regulatory, instructed members of the summit.

“They play a key function in retaining crop productivity and mainly an answer on depletion of nutrient factors in the soil,” she brought.

Among the highlights of the summit have been well-knownshows showcasing some of the Bureau of Agricultural Research-supported studies and improvement technology on value-including and stepped forward seed styles of legumes. Technologies on carrageenan for mungbean (munggo) productiveness, boron fertilization for advanced yield and profits of peanut, hermetic seed garage generation for mungbean, and cost-powerful seed garage era for peanut were additionally exhibited.

Using a mixture of rice sorts in the field can help farmers deal with illnesses generally plaguing the crop, mainly underneath strain-inclined regions.

The examine “To Mix or Not to Mix: Compatibility of Selected Rice Varieties to Increase Yield Stability underneath Stress-Prone Areas,” carried out by way of the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), showed that a aggregate of decided on released sorts has the mechanism to boom and stabilize yield, manipulate pests and diseases, and reap suitable overall performance on restrained water source. These varieties need to have comparative qualities regardless of having numerous origins and sundry capabilities.

“The novelty of this studies is exploring using released types no longer simplest in an irrigated lowland where sufficient water is available, however additionally in unfavorable regions. VarMix [Varietal Mixture] is recommended as an alternative technology or a forestall gap addressed to problematic places,” Imeldalyn Pacada, assignment chief of VarMix said.

Unheard Voices

In cooperation with farmers, researchers and extension officers, the task examined six sorts in 13 choose areas of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

The selection of sorts turned into primarily based at the similarities of their adulthood, grain form, amylose content, and genetic composition. No pesticide software become made and present farmers’ practices have been adapted in every experimental web site.

In beneath floor surroundings, preliminary VarMix mechanism investigation was finished via the subsequent technique: drought tolerance evaluation at seedling level, salinity tolerance at seedling stage, and root system under converting soil moisture.

According to Roel Suralta who analyzed the basis device improvement of VarMix, there were suitable varieties of sorts that can be blended. They determined that the mixture of drought-tolerant and drought-inclined varieties had been like minded and aided every other to live to tell the tale. Based at the results, drought-tolerant range provided water to the drought-inclined range whilst the soil dried out.

Aside from its proper yield even in elaborate situations, the VarMix team additionally assessed if quoted charges and eating pleasant had been similar with the acknowledged unmarried sorts in the market.

With the liberalization of rice trade and the arrival of weather exchange, I may want to project to say that Philippine agriculture is now at a totally crucial duration.

I am not pronouncing that the liberalization of rice exchange is horrific. In fact, I see it as an opportunity for the united states to reconsider, reorient and restrategize its agriculture rules, programs and initiatives. What worries me is rice farmers who are trapped in poverty will really surrender cultivating the crop once much less highly-priced rice imports hit the retail stage. And their numbers can reach the loads of heaps finishing up with out livelihood, or worse, begging inside the streets for alms. So is there a program in region to help the rice farmers who can be displaced to shift to cash crops with export capacity like espresso, cacao, cassava, rubber, palm oil and tropical end result, amongst others?

Agriculture Secretary William Dar affords the damages and losses added with the aid of typhoons in 2019

I need now not give an explanation for how weather exchange has been badly affecting Philippine agriculture because this is already apparent.

Given those elements plus the fact that our fertile soil and water resources are dwindling, what needs to be carried out to keep Philippine agriculture from going into a downward spiral?

On November 15 to sixteen, many solutions for the us of a’s agriculture region have been generated from the Peoples Agriculture Summit convened by means of AGILA on the Pampanga State Agricultural College in Magalang, Pampanga. I synthesized what had been mentioned from the summit and concluded that we do no longer want fancy answers to make the us of a’s agriculture quarter an engine of increase with the intention to take away poverty national.

Framework needed

Philippine agriculture is presently beset by using these foremost demanding situations: Low farm productivity; limited farm diversification; low investment; restricted use of generation; an underdeveloped agri-meals production quarter; and untapped export capability.

Also, the growth prices of the Philippine agriculture region has been inconsistent due to the fact that 2014, when a boom of one.83 percent turned into recorded. In 2015, it registered a 0.11-percent increase however slid by 1.41 percentage in 2016. In 2017, the u . S . A .’s agriculture area recorded a strong three.Ninety five-percentage increase rate. But this year to date has been a miserable one for the world, with a 1.47-percentage boom rate recorded inside the first area, zero.07-percentage growth inside the second sector, and a zero.Eighty three-percent contraction inside the 1/3 area.

From what I actually have determined in the ones years, Philippine agriculture lacked a holistic improvement framework that should have blanketed large investments outside of the rice enterprise and the broader software of technological know-how and era throughout all subsectors (plants, cattle, hen and fisheries) that might also cause more fee-including. Also, intense weather events have become worse during that period, accentuated by greater powerful typhoons and storms hitting the usa.

So what’s the manner forward in this issue? My answer — we want to reorient Philippine agriculture with a improvement framework to modernize and industrialize it.

I marvel if frameworking seems to an alien concept amongst bureaucrats. Or do bureaucrats worry operating within a improvement framework due to the fact it may straightjacket them?

But without a improvement framework, it would be nearly impossible to make green use of financial, logistical and human assets, and people aren’t in abundance within the Philippine setting.

Also, the improvement framework have to set an objective, and in this case, it’s miles modernizing and industrializing the united states’s agriculture zone.

Modernizing and industrializing the united states’s agriculture zone, however, does not truly imply adopting on a massive scale proven technologies for the arena and setting up more agri-based totally groups, due to the fact that method may want to isolate smallholders.

And while the Department of Agriculture and local government devices are at the forefront of agricultural development in the usa, the personal region have to take the lead in organising more agri-based totally businesses, adopting
technology-based totally answers and intensifying cost including, at the same time as fostering mutually-beneficial partnerships with smallholder farmers and fisher folk. The goal is to establish an agriculture zone this is meals at ease, aggressive, resilient, sustainable and inclusive.

There are a whole lot of opportunities nowadays to pursue a modernized and industrialized agriculture quarter, with import substitution and export promotion amongst them.

When it comes to import substitution, our farmers, in tandem with the agri-based business companies, can produce greater palm oil, espresso, cacao, black pepper and tamarind. Yes, we nevertheless must import a massive part of our black pepper and tamarind requirements. I find this ironical because we can without difficulty domesticate black pepper and tamarind on a larger scale.

For exports, coconut merchandise, rubber in raw or processed form, dried/frozen fruits, shrimps and artisan chocolate have an present or growing marketplace globally.

When it comes to becoming an export powerhouse for agricultural products, the Philippines can learn loads from its Southeast Asian opposite numbers who’ve an wonderful extension carrier device in region, have invested appropriately in research and improvement, consolidated farms into extra effective blocks, and facilitated non-public investments.

More importantly, our Southeast Asian counterparts have a expert forms not laid low with politics that facilitate the formula of plan-pushed applications/initiatives which have continuity, specially over the long time.
In the second one installment of this column-collection, I will discuss the vision, strategies, traits and goals/objectives for a modernized and industrialized agriculture area that is hooked up through a holistic improvement framework.

Fitch-owned BMI Research expects a probable tightening of economic coverage via the imperative bank before the stop of 2017 as inflationary pressures rise, at the same time as the vital financial institution attempts to stem capital outflows amid a greater competitive charge hike cycle in the United States.

The BSP could widen its interest fee corridor by means of the 0.33 zone of 2017, while inflation is predicted to accelerate, ANZ Research stated.

Bank lending

Bank lending grew through 17.9 percentage in January, supported by means of loans for manufacturing activities and family consumption. It grew via 17.Three percent in December.

Including opposite repurchase placements (RRPs) with the important financial institution, lending grew barely to 16.2 percent in January as compared with 16.1 percentage the preceding month.

Seasonally-adjusted month-on-month, commercial financial institution lending accelerated by using 1.8 percent for loans internet of RRPs and via 1.6 percent for loans that consist of RRPs.

Lending for production activities, which comprised 89.2 percent of the aggregate loan portfolio, grew with the aid of 17.Five percent from the revised sixteen.9 percentage in December.

This changed into driven in the main by real estate activities, which accounted for 18.7 percent, followed with the aid of wholesale and retail trade, and repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles (20.6 percent); monetary and insurance activities (25.1 percent); energy, fuel, steam and air-conditioning supply (15.8 percent); manufacturing (eight.5 percent).

“Bank lending to different sectors also expanded in the course of the month except in the case of public management and defense, compulsory social safety (-eight.2 percentage); and mining and quarrying (-three.3 percentage),” the principal bank stated.
Loans for family consumption grew by means of 23.7 percentage, up from 23.4 percentage in December, “because of the growth in credit score card loans as well as sustained growth in motor car loans and revenue-based widespread-cause loans, offsetting the decline in different kinds of family loans.”

IHS Markit senior economist Rajiv Biswas stated the extensive upturn in bank lending, with loans for manufacturing activities growing by 17.Five percent, suggests the ongoing sturdy momentum within the underlying financial system.

“Strong increase in consumption-related lending of 23.7 percentage also highlighted the energy of consumer self belief, boosted by way of speedy monetary boom and resilient inflows of remittances from employees abroad,” he said.

On a more cautionary tone, the economist said the buoyant boom in consumer lending highlights the want for persevered close principal bank surveillance of banking sector mortgage exposures for household client debt to make sure that family leverage ratios do now not end up a supply of macroeconomic vulnerability in a state of affairs of growing inflation and hobby rates.