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Vol. 5 No. 5
May. 1-31, 2004
Sec. Lorenzo gives recognition to 6 successful Bt corn farmers

GMA-Corn
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?

June 2010 Articles:

:: BAR is focal agency for Organic Agriculture RD&E
:: RA 10089 creates Philippine Rubber Research Institute; BAR leads drafting of Implementing Rules & Regulations
:: DA celebrates 112th anniversary
:: Book on FIELDS program launched
:: BAR provides server to PhilAgriNet; agricultural info database launched
:: 2KR Program Gran support BPSU's organic vegetable profuction through protective cultivation technology
:: Balik scientist develops sustainable biofuel
:: Shift to high-yield varieties is the way to go
:: Milking profit from dairy farming through CPAR on processing feeds
:: Tech forum and exhibit to showcase commerciable technologies from agriculture and fisheries research
:: DA-IRRI hi-tech project to boost palay yields

 
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