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Government

MINDANAO WILL BE THE FOOD BASKET OF THE PHILIPPINES – DAR

Mindanao will be the food basket of the Philippines and will be given its due share and priority in agriculture and rural development. This was the assurance given by Agriculture Secretary William Dar in a press briefing in Davao City recently where he cited Mindanao’s contributions to the country’s economy. Dar cited the potentials of […]

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Government

GOV’T TO ROLL OUT P1.5-B LOAN TO FARMERS AFFECTED BY RICE TARIFFICATION LAW – DAR

Government will roll out a P1.5-billion loan program for farmers who were affected by the Rice Tariffication Law (RTL) due to the influx of cheaper rice imports. At the sidelines of a forum on hybrid rice recently, Agriculture Secretary William Dar said instead of an initial conditional cash transfer to help the rice farmers, the […]

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Government

AGRI TARGETS OUTPUT OF 3-4% UNTIL 2022 – DAR

Newly appointed Agriculture Secretary William Dar is targeting a 3-4 percent growth in the agriculture sector until 2022.  This comes amid a decline in agricultural output in the second quarter of the year, which was recorded at -1.27 percent, as compared to 0.12 percent for the same period last year, according to the data released […]

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Government

PHILIPPINES-ISRAEL FORGE P44-B SOLAR POWER PLANT PROJECT DEAL – PIÑOL

In a bid to strengthen the country’s agriculture industry and support farmers, the Department of Agriculture (DA) closed a deal with the government for a P44-billion loan to complete the proposed solar power plant project. Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol and Israel Ambassador to the Philippines Rafael Harpaz signed the Implementing Agreement (IA) on Agricultural Cooperation […]

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Government

TAWI-TAWI CHOSEN AS SITE FOR FIRST FLOATING SOLAR FARM – PIÑOL

The fishing island of Sibutu in Tawi-Tawi will be the first fishing community with a floating solar farm to power ice-making and cold storage equipment, and serve as a fish convergence area or “Payao.” Sibutu Island was unanimously chosen to be the site of the multi-function floating solar farm. In a meeting recently with executives […]

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Government

AGRI DEPT TO PROBE GERMAN EXPORTER PROFOOD – PIÑOL

Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol has ordered a thorough investigation on German pork exporter ProFood to ensure that its preparation methods conform with local safety standards. “We have to conduct a thorough investigation to ensure that their system is safe.” “The entry of the dreaded ASF (African Swine Fever) into the country could lead to the […]

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Government

BFAR TO DISTRIBUTE 5,000 TRANSPONDERS TO COMMERCIAL FISHING VESSELS – GONGONA

The Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (DA-BFAR) will be distributing an initial 5,000 “transponders” or vessel monitoring measures (VMM) to commercial fishing vessels before the year ends. DA Undersecretary and BFAR national director Eduardo Gongona revealed the move on the sidelines of the “Kapihan sa Talakayan Tungo sa Malinis at Masaganang Karagatan” […]

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Government

FIBERGLASS BOATS GIVEN TO F/B GEM-VER RESCUED FISHERMEN ARE NOT DEFECTIVE – PIÑOL

Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol said critics were proven wrong by sea trials, which showed that the 12 fiberglass fishing boats given to the 22 Filipino fishermen involved in the Recto Bank incident are not defective. “The 12 units of fiberglass fishing boats given by the government to the crew of FB GEM-VER, which critics earlier […]

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Government

WE DENOUNCE THE ACT OF THE CHINESE VESSEL IN ABANDONING FISHERMEN IN DISTRESS – PIÑOL

Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol, together with the 22 rescued fishermen who called themselves the “Recto Bank 22,” denounced the act of the crew of the Chinese vessel for abandoning them after ramming their boat, the F/B Gem-Vir 1.  “We denounce the act of the Chinese vessel in abandoning the fishermen in distress,” Piñol said in a […]

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Government

DON’T BRING CANNED PORK TO PHILIPPINES – PIÑOL

The African Swine Fever (ASF) virus has been detected in cans of Sky Dragon luncheon meat which were brought in from Hong Kong last March 25 and were confiscated at the Clark International Airport in Clark field, Pampanga from a returning Filipino.  According to Dr. Rachel R. Azul, Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) of the […]