Negros Occidental to pilot free-seed program for three varieties of rice
NEGROS OCCIDENTAL will become the first provincial government to invest in a seed production program focused on at most three rice varieties, Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol said on Sunday.
USDA, farm businesses head to S. Korea
WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) said on Friday it will lead a trade delegation of farm organizations and businesses to South Korea, in an apparent effort to boost opportunities for U.S. farmers in a key U.S. export market.
Russia to resume some Brazil beef and pork imports
MOSCOW/SÃO PAULO -- Russia’s agriculture safety watchdog said on Wednesday it would allow imports of beef and pork from nine Brazilian plants to resume from Thursday, ending an 11-month ban triggered by food safety concerns.
US farmers turn back to grains on weak soy demand
CHICAGO -- Since the mid-2000s, North Dakota farmer Paul Thomas has planted more of his land with soybeans as China’s demand for the oil seed grew. The shift culminated this year when Thomas planted 1,600 of his 5,000 acres with soybeans, the most ever.
Davao chocolate makers target int’l trade shows
DAVAO CITY -- The recently-concluded 5th Davao Chocolate Festival saw a growing number of chocolate makers preparing to raise the industry’s profile in international trade shows.
Trader expects self-sufficiency in coffee crop to be possible soon
HENRY & SONS, a coffee trader, said that it expects self-sufficiency to be possible in the Philippine coffee market as the industry strives to improve both volume and quality.
Mapping technology seen helping PCA improve tree count
THE Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) is seeking to adopt mapping technology to improve its estimates of coconut production per region.
Big push for soy consumption addressing production bottlenecks
THE Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization (PHilMech) said that it is aiming to boost the soybean crop for human consumption by developing new processing equipment for farmers.
SMARTSeas PH Project aims to arrest marine resource degradation
DAVAO CITY -- Small-scale fishermen, whose livelihoods depend mainly on municipal waters, require expanded fishing territory due to the continued degradation of the marine habitat, according to Vincent V. Hilomen, project manager of SMARTSeas PH.
Japan’s Aeon to sell TADECO bananas under agri best-practices label
DAVAO CITY -- Japanese retail group Aeon Co. Ltd. is including Philippine bananas sourced from Tagum Agricultural Development Company, Inc. (TADECO) for a special product line recognizing companies with Global Good Agricultural Practice (GAP) Certification.
Davao summit to roll out apps for farmers, halal
DAVAO CITY -- A mobile application that will help farmers connect directly with buyers will be one of the new technologies that will be introduced during the 2018 LivEx, an innovation summit organized by ICT-Davao, Inc., to be held here on Oct. 22.
DA to expand MAV imports of chipping potatoes
THE Department of Agriculture (DA) will implement a unilateral minimum access volume (MAV) on chipping potatoes at 25,000 metric tons (MT) starting Oct. 25 which would bring down tariff rates to 3% from 40% within that volume.