Agriculture Business Week

When nature shows its wrath, we uncontrollably find ourselves in a quandary.

When Dr. Gary Garriot of Winrock International visited NOGROCOMA recently, we had a farmers’ meeting. Typhoon “Crising” left in its wake rotten onions damaged by the rain. It was at that meeting when a farmer shared his feeling about this debacle. He said the onion farmers are technology-savvy. He knows how to take care of his onions. Given the experience and NOGROCOMA’s never-ending technology seminars, once he plants his onions, giving proper nutrients and care, in 90 or 120 days, he can produce onions ready for the market. It is only when nature shows its wrath through this so called “climate change” do we find ourselves in a quandary. All the four months of hard work gone to waste. Because the months of April and May are traditionally harvest months, a time when the heat of summer is necessary for harvesting. But our climate has changed that and we are unable to adjust. His heartache is evident.

NOGROCOMA has been identified as a food enterprise able to meet the challenges of globalization. It will be featured as one of 24 case studies of food enterprises all over the world. Winrock has been working for the Melinda and Bill Gates Foundation for the project.

(more…)

Posted on August 8th, 2009 under Climate Change. Tags: Climate Change. Comments: None

So it is no wonder why the Philippines is the first country in Southeast Asia to enact a law on biofuels. The Biofuels Act of 2006 aims to “develop and utilize indigenous renewable and sustainablysourced clean energy sources to reduce dependence on imported oil.”

The Act, which was signed in January 12, 2007, also envisions increasing rural employment and income, mitigating toxic and greenhouses gas emissions, and ensuring the availability of alternative and renewable clean energy “without any detriment to the natural ecosystem, biodiversity and food reserves of the country.”

The Department of Agriculture said the reduction in fuel consumption as a result of the enactment of the Biofuels Act would save the country the P17.3 billion a year spent on imported oil stock.

(more…)

Posted on June 14th, 2009 under Climate Change, Going Green. Tags: Biofuel, Climate Change. Comments: None

The Establishment of a research institute that will serve as the country’s first line of defense against drought and climate change is now being proposed by two noted scientists from the Ilocos provinces, Dr William D. Dar, director general of the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), and Dr Santiago R. Obien, retired executive director of the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice).

They said the Philippines has more than three million hectares of drylands cultivated by about five million households, most of whom are very poor especially those in Northern Luzon, Central Visayas, and Southern Mindanao. Recurrent droughts and environmental degradation due to climate change aggravate the suffering of these poor communities.

In 2007 alone, the entire Ilocos region experienced extreme drought causing serious damage to corn and rice crops in La Union, Ilocos Sur and Pangasinan. There was practically no rain in the whole region from June to August.

(more…)

Posted on October 24th, 2008 under Climate Change. Tags: Climate Change. Comments: None

Cordillera, depending on the state of its environment, can effectively cushion the effects of climate change. But due to the continuous devastation of its pristine environment throughout the years, the viability of Cordillera as the watershed of North Luzon is now at risk.

This is aggravated by a burgeoning population, mining, logging, and forest fires. With the declining forest cover, erosion easily occurs, observes Thomas Killip, presidential assistant for Cordillera. This is why when the rain comes, continues Killip, water flows down right away, carrying silt and forms into rampaging flashflood.

He also said that the deterioration of forest not only affects irrigation and domestic water supply but also sanitation, fisheries, livestock, crop production, and other livelihood industries that depend on the water from the Cordillera Mountains.
(more…)

Posted on October 12th, 2008 under Climate Change. Tags: Climate Change. Comments: None