The Ilocos Times

Retired  educator Dra. Celeste N. Querijero now devotes her time to cultivating mushrooms and managing her farm in Misamis Oriental, which has become a model of sustainable and inclusive farming. OPOL, Misamis Oriental—After dedicating 44 years to shaping minds as an agriculture professor at the Mindanao State University (MSU), Dra. Celeste N. Querijero was offered a prestigious international consultancy post—a tempting opportunity that recognized her expertise and decades of experience. But she chose to stay closer to home to empower small farmers in the community by sharing her knowledge of sustainable farming that defined her teaching career. "Even before I retired, I already had a deep passion for agriculture,” she shared. “As MSU’s coordinator for extension services, I saw firsthand the pressing needs of our farmers. They wanted knowledge, access, and a stable livelihood. So after retirement, I volunteered myself to serve. It’s my way of giving back after all the blessi...

Laoag  mayor Michael Keon along with several members of the Sangguniang Panlungsod headed by Laoag vice mayor Rey Carlos Fariñas lead the distribution of the PHP12 million worth of agricultural inputs to all the 1,500 combined farmers and fisher folks associations in the city. (Doms Dela Cruz ) By Dominic B. dela Cruz,  Staff Reporter Laoag City —The city government here, by mayor Michael M. Keon, distributed   PHP12 million worth of agricultural inputs to farmers and fishermen in the city. According to Keon, he said he considers the agricultural sector as the most important sector in the city considering that it “provides food on the table”. This is the reason, he said he strongly supports the agricultural sector to ensure the constant food supply here in the city. The mayor believes that food will be one of the main issues in the future and he wanted Laoag to be a self-sufficient and the people to buy local and not imported food products. The mayor cong...

What are the current problems of agriculture in the Philippines? The Philippines has become a rice exporter since 1976, but the poor consumers who buy rice have not been benefited. The price of rice has not stopped increasing, because the prices of fertilizers and other farm inputs which are made by multinationals keep on increasing. Even the Filipino farmers are still poor. Thus, it has been claimed by expert observers that only the multinational corporations and their representatives in the Philippines reap the benefits. What are other factors that contribute to our agricultural problems: corruption, smuggling, mismanagement, inflation, 5 calamity. So, what possible recommendations or suggestions can we provide to correct these problems or at least improve our agricultural sector. The issues mentioned regarding agriculture in the Philippines are indeed significant and multifaceted. Here are some additional factors that contribute to the agricultural problems in the country: ...

AFTER  25 years in service, retired policeman Ritchie Tenegra ventured into poultry farming, and through LANDBANK’s support, now contributes to enhancing food security for the local community. LEON, Iloilo—From his sworn oath to ‘serve and protect’ the community for 25 years as a dedicated police officer, Ritchie Tenegra shifted his focus towards an equally meaningful purpose: food security. He has since embraced retirement by pursuing his other passion of poultry farming, and is now one of the reliable food suppliers in this town. At a young age, Ritchie saw the potential of animal farming through his parents who owned a piggery. He later followed their footsteps and established his own small piggery in his backyard in 2010 as an additional source of income to support his family. While still in the police force, he had limited capital to start his piggery operations. So Ritchie applied to be a beneficiary of the Swine Dispersal Program of the Department of Agriculture (DA), ...