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NFA-FDC Conducts Training on Global Trends in Food Safety

Sun, 04 Apr 2010 14:13:28 +0000

The Food Development Center (FDC) of the National Food Authority (NFA) will conduct a training course on Hot Topics and Global Trends in Food Safety on April 6, 2010 at the FDC Compound, FTI Complex, Taguig City .

The training course will provide the participants insights into the new concepts and approaches designed to combat the widening global foodborne outbreaks. Some of the hot topics related to food safety are fresh produce, natural and organic foods; convenience food and packaging; new legislations, regulatory oversight and food standards; new technologies; food fraud and food defense; calamity and preparedness response; and booming global retail, tourism and hospitality industries. Read more…

19th ProPork Convention Leads Industry’s Bid Towards More Efficient and Improved Pork Production

Sun, 04 Apr 2010 14:09:25 +0000

The hog industry and its allied services are once again abuzz with excitement as it awaits the holding of the 19 th Hog Convention and Trade Exhibits – this time in Davao City .

“We’re very excited already and we look forward to another successful turn out,” said ProPork President Albert Lim, Jr. “We have been very lucky that thousands of people come every year. It just shows that they are interested to learn from the seminars and to check out the state-of-the-art services and equipment of our exhibitors.”

This year’s theme, “Ensuring survival through efficiency and improved pork production”, will educate participants with practical and technical information and tips from experts – helping them secure the safety and profitability of their farms.

The event, scheduled on April 8-10, 2010 at the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas in Davao City hosted by Davao Hog Farmers Association, Inc. and organized annually by the Pork Producers Federation of the Philippines, Inc. or ProPork (formerly the National Federation of Hog Farmers, Inc.) , is expected to welcome thousands of participants and exhibitors who are eager to learn new techniques to sustain the growth of their businesses.

The annual event – the biggest and longest running trade exhibition focusing on the swine industry, gathers thousands of commercial and backyard hog raisers from all over Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

Fondevilla Orders D.A. Regional Heads to Prepare for Wet Crop

Sun, 04 Apr 2010 12:42:27 +0000

Secretary Bernie Fondevilla of the Department of Agriculture has ordered DA regional officials to start preparing this early for the wet planting season in May and closely coordinate with farmers and other stakeholders in overcoming the effects of the El Nino on standing crops.

Fondevilla said the DA will continue to distribute water pumps, seeds, fertilizers and other inputs to farmers to help them tide over the impact of the El Nino on the agriculture sector.

He said the DA will closely work with the local government units (LGUs), which now have primary responsibility over the farm sector in their respective areas of jurisdiction, to provide subsistence farmers with the necessary assistance they require, including emergency employment, diesel subsidies and additional farm inputs should they decide to shift from rice and corn to other crops.

“Small farmers and fisherfolk will be given priority when it comes to hiring workers for irrigation repair and the construction of farm-to-market roads,” Fondevilla said during the recent Management Committee (Mancom) meeting at the DA central office in Quezon City . “These are the measures that we are immediately implementing to help our farmers and fishers affected by the El Nino-induced dry spell.”

WB Assessing Impact of Antipoverty Program in Mindanao

Sun, 04 Apr 2010 12:41:01 +0000

A team from the World Bank (WB) is now reviewing the antipoverty program of the Department of Agriculture (DA) in Mindanao .

The WB is assessing the impact of agricultural infrastructure, livelihood, governance reform and environmental projects implemented by the Mindanao Rural Development Program (MRDP APL2).

Jointly funded by the World Bank, the national government and local government units (LGUs), MRDP is a five-year program geared towards uplifting the lives of the poorest of the poor in Mindanao by increasing income of farmers, capacitating women and indigenous peoples, and enhancing local governance and environmental protection.

The three-week review mission started in Davao City last Wednesday, March 24, and regional consultations in the cities of General Santos, Zamboanga, Cagayan de Oro and Butuan will follow in the weeks ahead.

During a workshop in Davao City this week, Agriculture Secretary Bernie Fondevilla thanked the World Bank, LGU executives and private-sector partners for working with the DA on this project in pursuit of rural poverty alleviation and national food security.

Fondevilla also cited the program partners for making use of the workshop to thoroughly review the MRDP with an eye on fine-tuning it to make it a truly sustainable, high-impact program.

Presyong Retail sa Bagsakan

Sun, 04 Apr 2010 12:38:36 +0000

Ngayong araw ng Lunes, ika-29 ng Marso 2010 , narito po ang presyo ng mga pangunahing bilihin tulad ng karne, isda at mga piling gulay sa 19 bagsakan centers sa Metro Manila. Ito ay ang Pasig City Mega Market(formely Mutya ng Pasig Market), Viajero Market, City Market of Antipolo, Muntinlupa Public Market, South Station, New C.I Market, KADIWA Center, Marikina Market Zone, Marikina Public Market, Pritil Market, Commonwealth Market, Maypajo Market, Rublou Market(Greenland at Floodway), Meycauayan Market, Mega – Q Mart, Carmona Public Market, Pasay Public Market at Bacoor Public Market.

Ang karne, tulad ng pork ham/kasim ay mabibili sa halagang P160.00 hanggang P180.00 kada kilo. Ang pinakamura ay mabibili sa palengke ng Rublou Market Greenland at Floodway.

Ang liempo naman ay mabibili ng P167.00 hanggang P190.00 . Ang pinakamura ay mabibili sa palengke ng Rublou Market Greenland at Floodway.

NFA Intensifies Palay Buying in Spite of El Niño

Sun, 04 Apr 2010 12:36:09 +0000

The National Food Authority’s palay procurement has hit a total of 962,655 bags as of the third week of March in spite of the effect of El Nino to the country’s agricultural production.

The NFA bought 489,114 bags of palay in January; 339,543 bags in February and 133,998 bags by the third week of March. The agency is targeting to buy 696,900 bags for April, the peak of summer harvest.

For the same period last year, the NFA was able to buy some 1.2 million bags of palay

NFA administrator Jessup P. Navarro said with the present tight supply of the commodity, the agency’s active buying in effect pushed competition with traders resulting in a sellers market benefiting the farmers.

Farm level price of palay currently averages P16.82 per kilo. It was P16.07 per kilo during last year’s same period, a difference of P.75 per kilo or P37.50 per cavan of 50 kilograms.

The NFA meanwhile buys clean and dry palay at P17.70 per kilogram inclusive of drying, transport and cooperative development incentives. The grant of these incentives brings the agency’s effective palay buying price to P885 per 50 kg .