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Archives
May. 1-31, 2004
Sec. Lorenzo gives
recognition to 6 successful Bt corn farmers
by Rita T. dela
Cruz
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| Francisco Piagola, hybrid
corn farmer, receives his plaque from D.A. Secretary
Luis P. Lorenzo, Jr. (second from left). In the
picture are Mr. Rosalino Rondon, President of Crop
Life Philippines, Inc. (left) and Dr. Art Salazar,
(right) director of GMA-Corn and national team leader
for Corn RDE of DA-BAR. |
Six corn farmers who were successful in
the growing of Bt corn were recognized on18 May 2004
at the BSWM Convention Hall. No less than the Department
of Agriculture (DA) Secretary Luis P. Lorenzo. Jr. handed
them their plaque of recognition during the Kasaganaan
sa Mais Pangkabuhayan Tekno Fair. The activity was part
of the Farmers and Fisherfolk Month celebration, which
opened on 17 May 2004. Various agricultural products
and the latest innovations on agricultural and fishery
technology and agricultural equipment were exhibited.
The six corn farmers were: Francisco
Piagola, Carlos Guevarra, Peviano Soriano, Jay Narciso,
Jesus Gavino, and Carmelito Dinopol. The award was given
in recognition of their successful use of the biotech/hybrid
corn that brought them increased production and income.
Planting corn on his four-hectare land
in Lanao del Sur, Francisco Piagola started using hybrid
corn in the 90s, increasing his yield from 1.5 tons
to a whopping 4-6 tons/ha. Not satisfied with this increase,
he tried the NK, a hybrid corn developed by Syngenta
and produced an even higher yield, 8-9 tons/ha. With
the enormous increase of corn yield, he decided to quit
his 8 am to 5 pm job and became a full time corn farmer.
Now, he is able to send all his children to school and
acquire some pieces of property.
Carlos Guevarra was almost in tears when
he started his testimony about the wonders of using
biotech corn. His 10-hectare land became productive
when he started planting a biotech-enhanced corn variety,
Pioneer‚ Hybrid 30Y73 with YieldGard* corn borer
protection during the dry season. He was proud to tell
his audience that using this hybrid corn increased his
average yield to 10.25 tons/ha earning him a net of
P50, 000/ha.
Like the other happy farmers present
during the activity, Peviano Soriano was all smiles
when he shared his story. He used to be a seaman who
decided to go full-time in corn farming after discovering
the benefits of hybrid corn. According to him, planting
NK 8840 earned him an average of 8,568 kilos of corn/ha,
which is high compared to his previous yield of 6,000
kilos/ha.
Jay Narcisco was thankful that when he
decided to try Monsanto’s YieldGard 818 last cropping
season, he never regretted his decision. He was not
satisfied with the average yield of 7 tons/ha that he
was harvesting using the regular corn. With YieldGard
he happily announced that he harvests 9-10 tons of corn/ha,
which he considers a “phenomenal harvest increasing
his income by 30%.”
Like many Filipinos who had worked as
Overseas Contract Workers (OCW), Jesus Gavino wanted
to invest his savings into something that would earn
him big bucks. Already with a piece of land, Mang Jay
started acquiring a tractor and conventional seeds.
His harvest would average to a low 5 tons/ha. Later,
he tried YieldGard 818 and started harvesting an average
of 9-10 tons/ha, which put him in good lead among the
other farmers in Lubao, Pampanga.
Meanwhile, Carmelito Dinopol, also an
awardee for that day, was not able to come. He is from
Koronadal, South Cotabato and has been planting hybrid
corn for the last two years, starting with only five
hectares. At present, he is now financing almost 300
hectares of land allotted to hybrid corn, particularly
the Pioneer‚ Hybrid 3014 and 30M50s.
Handling over the plaques of recognition,
aside from Sec. Lorenzo were Dr. Art Salazar, director
of GMA Corn and DA-BAR’s national team leader
for corn, and Mr. Rosalino Rondon, president of Crop
Life Philippines, Inc. 
May 1-31 2004 Articles:
:: Sec. Lorenzo gives recognition to 6 successful Bt corn farmers
::
BAR, Worldfish Center project boosts local milkfish industry
::
DA-BAR, Landbank sign MOU for national technology commercialization program
::
DA celebrates Farmers' and Fisherfolk's Month
::
Region 2 GIS technicians undergo hands-on training
::
Importance of soil and water highlighted; Medrano keynotes 7th PSSST confab
::
ALAP strengthens data management capacity in agriculture
::
Woes and chances of the agriculture sector
::
Is your soy sauce safe?
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