QUEZON CITY, Philippines – “Something good is happening to the Philippine agriculture,” Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala emphasized during the opening of the Philippine Association of Agriculturists, Inc., (PAA) 3rd Congress at Angeles City, Pampanga.
Citing milestones and accomplishments for the last five years, the agriculture chief said that the Department of Agriculture (DA) was allotted a total of P339.7 billion from 2011 to 2015. Alcala said that the amount is “a proof that the President trusts (us) enough and believes that we can craft and implement projects for the development of the rural sector.”
He reported that as the country remains to be fee of bird flu and foot-and-mouth disease without vaccination, more opportunities have opened up for meat and poultry products.
“We have been exporting Yakitori chicken and Bukidnon-grown Peking duck to Japan. This is in addition, to the chicken and other products to the United Arab Emirates and South Korea markets,” Alcala said.
Aside from the achievements in the livestock subsector, Alcala also reported successful initiatives within the fisheries sector specifically the lifting of the yellow card warning from the European Union.
“This particular development opened access to the tuna-rich High Seas Pocket 1 of the Pacific Ocean,” he said.
Alcala added that because of the collaborative efforts of the public and private sectors, the country’s local fishermen are now given a green light to fish in one of the richest marine sources of the country.
“Ang Pilipinas lang po ang tanging bansa na mabilis na naalisan ng yellow card warning sa buong mundo,” he said.
Aside from presenting the unprecedented accomplishments of the agriculture and fisheries sectors for the past five years, the DA chief recognized the valuable contributions of the professional agriculturists in further enhancing the Philippine agriculture. He also took the opportunity to encourage the same professionals to take part in the government’s campaign to attain food sufficiency and improved income and production of farmers and fishers.
“Let us continue to partner and work together so that we can reach the maximum potential of the rural sector,” he said.
Lastly, the DA secretary asked everyone to help change the image of the Filipino farmer from a simple land laborer into a successful entrepreneur and self-sustaining businessman.
Better agriculture in the last five years
