Categories
Government

DA LIFTS BAN ON POULTRY FROM AUSTRALIA

The Department of Agriculture (DA) has lifted its temporary ban on the importation of domestic and wild birds and related products—including poultry meat, day-old chicks, eggs, and semen—originating from Australia. The ban was initially instituted under DA Memorandum Order No. 21, issued in June last year, following reported outbreaks of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI). Australian […]

Categories
Government

NFA OPENS SALE OF P20 RICE TO FARMERS, FISHERFOLK

Starting August 13, warehouses of the National Food Authority (NFA) will open their doors not only to buy palay from farmers but also to allow them to participate in the “Benteng Bigas, Meron Na!”—a key initiative of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. where rice is sold at P20 a kilo. “It is only fair that those […]

Categories
Government

PBMM ALLOTS P18B FOR P20 RICE PROGRAM EXPANSION

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has allocated P18 billion to expand the government’s “Benteng Bigas, Meron Na!” initiative to provide as many as 60 million Filipinos access to the P20-per-kilo rice. Speaking at a post-State of the Nation Address forum in San Juan City, Tiu Laurel explained that about […]

Categories
Government

US TRADE DEAL TO PROTECT PH AGRI PRODUCTS – DA

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said that Philippine trade negotiators have assured him that key locally-produced agricultural goods such as rice, corn, sugar, chicken, fish, and pork will be protected in the ongoing tariff negotiations with the US. “Secretary Frederick Go and Trade Secretary Cristina Roque have assured us that the top priority for […]

Categories
Government

DA TO FAST TRACK HELP FOR HABAGAT-HIT FARMERS

Agricultural losses caused by the combined effects of tropical storms Crising, Dante, and Emong—along with the Southwest Monsoon (Habagat)—have reached P1.12 billion, with more than half of the damage sustained by rice farms, according to preliminary estimates from the Department of Agriculture (DA). In a report to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council […]

Categories
Politics

DA URGED: GIVE FARMERS HOTLINE TO REPORT ABUSE

Senator Kiko Pangilinan is urging the Department of Agriculture (DA) to establish dedicated hotline numbers to enable farmers to easily and swiftly report instances of abusive trading practices and exploitation in the agricultural sector. Pangilinan was in Sto. Tomas, Pampanga to deliver relief goods to victims of the recent flooding there caused by subsequent typhoons […]

Categories
Government

TIU LAUREL ASSURES CRISING-HIT FARMERS OF AID

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. directed Officer-in-Charge Undersecretary for Operations Roger Navarro and Undersecretary Chris Morales, who oversees the country’s National Rice Program, to immediately visit areas devastated by Tropical Storm Crising and the Southwest Monsoon to provide urgent support to affected farmers and fisherfolk. “We want our farmers and fisherfolk to know that […]

Categories
Government

DA MOBILIZES AID FOR CRISING-HIT FARMERS, FISHERS

Agriculture Undersecretary for Operations Roger Navarro, officer-in-charge of the Department of Agriculture (DA), directed all DA agencies to mobilize swiftly and extend immediate assistance to farmers and fisherfolk adversely affected by Tropical Storm Crising, intensified further by the relentless Southwest Monsoon. “We must act without delay—weather permitting—to ease the suffering of our farmers and fisherfolk,” said […]

Categories
Government

PCIC PARAMETRIC PLAN TO EXPEDITE CLAIMS PAYOUTS

The Philippine Crop Insurance Corp. (PCIC) s rolling out a pioneering parametric insurance program aimed at speeding up claims settlement for rice farmers affected by extreme weather—a transformative step in PCIC’s approach to agricultural risk management. PCIC President Jovy Bernabe said the innovative insurance model uses remote sensing technologies to automatically trigger payouts based on […]

Categories
Government

DA: ‘BENTENG BIGAS’ NOW IN LA UNION, BAGUIO CITY

The Department of Agriculture (DA) has expanded the coverage of “Benteng Bigas, Meron Na!”— the flagship food program of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. that offers rice at P20 per kilo to vulnerable sectors—to La Union and Baguio City. Launched in partnership with local government units (LGUs) and farmer cooperatives and associations (FCAs), the program was […]