P7M tissue culture project to yield high quality crops
HIGH quality of crops will soon be produced, and their propagation will be faster with the implementation of the P7-million worth tissue culture project of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR).
Atty. Edwin N. Mendame Jr., Provincial Agrarian Reform Program Officer, said that the proposed project is a technological breakthrough in the propagation of plants, and it will benefit the agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) in Murcia, Negros Occidental.
Mendame disclosed that the project’s advantage is the rapid production of high-quality and uniform planting materials that can be multiplied on a year-round basis under disease-free conditions, anywhere, regardless of the season and weather.
This would mean higher annual yield for the ARB Organizations (ARBOs) and increased farm productivity and income for the ARB members.
He added that the convergence meeting-cum-planning between the representatives from the DAR Negros Occidental 1 and the Murcia local government unit (LGU) was conducted and discussed the implementation of the project, which is worth P7,067,200.
“The average age of Filipino farmers is around fifty-seven (57) years old since the younger generation chooses lucrative professions instead of agricultural-related courses. By this breakthrough in technology and with the opportunities cited in the tissue culture project, the younger generation will be encouraged to finally engage in farming,” Mendame said.
Meanwhile, Aisha May Ardiente, DAR Negros Occidental 1 Officer-in-Charge (OIC) Chief Agrarian Reform Program Officer, said that the project is funded under the Agrarian Reform Fund (ARF) for the implementation of the Sustainable and Resilient Agrarian Reform Communities (SuRe ARCs) program.
Ardiente disclosed that Villa Carolina Integrated Organic Farmers Association was pre-selected to be the recipient of the greenhouse to help them expand their livelihood activities and generate more income by undertaking the enterprise-based crop nursery project.
Acting Murcia Mayor Johnny Reosura, on the other hand, expressed his all-out support for the provision and establishment of a P7 million-worth tissue culture project by the DAR Negros Occidental.
“We have been affected by the pandemic where food shortage was experienced especially in urban areas, and it is high time to give utmost priority to agriculture and promote food sufficiency and safety,” he said.
Reosura assured DAR officials and other representatives from the national agencies of the local government’s support of the project and other agricultural activities.
The SuRe ARCs is a DAR-initiated project that provides the ARB’s access to quality seedlings and ensures the production of improved crop varieties and better-quality plant materials.
