Reboot PH Tourism! Along With That, Reboot Provinces With Organic Agriculture!

I am reading the news report by ANN (Author Not Named, 13 April 2023, Boracay Island News Network, boracayislandnews.com) shared on Facebook by Jun N Aguirre Jags (top image), where Boracay Governor Jose Enrique Miraflores sounds apologetic: “Aklan Still An Agri Province With Vibrant Tourism Industry, Says Guv.” The word “Still” steals the thunder from the announcement! Instead, if I were Guv Miraflores, I would be appreciative and say something like this: “Boracay Island is now doubly vibrant – with its vibrant organic agriculture and even more vibrant tourism!” Googling, I can see no other province in the Philippines, island or not, that can boast such an accomplishment. (Congratulations, Boracay!)

Organic Boracay is at least 15 years old. Gaby Novenario says (11 May 2018, “How Negros Paved The Way For Organic Agriculture In The Philippines,” F&B Report, fnbreport.ph):

Ten years ago, the local governments of Negros Oriental and Occidental signed a memorandum of agreement to work together and turn the island into the “Organic Food Bowl of Asia.” Since then, the provinces have produced 10,000 hectares of organic land, serving as the benchmark for the rest of the country to follow suit.

Wow! I must say, I an advocate of organic agriculture for the last 56 years, starting 1967 when I was Substitute Instructor in Horticulture at the-then UPCA, now UP Los Baños.

“We couldn’t have done it on our own,” says Ramon “Chin Chin” Uy Jr, founder of Fresh Start Organics and President of the Organic na Negros! Organic Producers and Retailers Association, on the organic movement of the Negros provinces. “It took the cooperation of the government, different stakeholders, and the consumers’ support of the organic movement for it to become successful. Had one of these [been not] in the mix, it wouldn’t have taken off.”

What is clear to me, an agriculturist, is that for now Boracay can rely on its organic agriculture (OA) to encourage more and more tourists to the island resort. Naturally, among other things, OA produces healthy foods that should draw more tourists to visit the island not only to relax their bodies but also eat healthier foods – that’s double compensation both for tourists and farmers.

In the title, I said, “Reboot PH Tourism! Along With That, Reboot Provinces With Organic Agriculture.” Currently, we have a total of 82 provinces in the Philippines (Wikipedia, en.wikipedia.org). I am now thinking of my native province Pangasinan, where you have several tourist attractions; in Guide To The Philippines (guidetothephilippines.ph), Klara Iskra Añonuevo has the following “12 Best Pangasinan Tourist Spots”:

Cape Bolinao Lighthouse, Our Farm Republic, Tayug Sunflower Eco Park, Balingasay River (Bolinao), Bolinao Falls, Lingayen Beach, Tondol White Sand Beach, Enchanted Cave (Bolinao), Patar Beach, Cabongaoan Beach & Death Pool, Minor Basilica Of Our Lady Of The Rosary Of Manaoag, and Hundred Islands National Park.

Today, I see Pangasinan with its dozen of tourist spots needs to reboot the whole province to organic agriculture to attract hundreds of thousands of tourists to this heart-shaped province in Central Luzon!@517
(Pangasinan map from pngwing.com)

Reboot “Land Reform” With “Band Reform” – Barkada: Co-Operate As A Group!

The PH’s land reform beneficiaries have a unified demand: “Fight For Genuine Agrarian Reform” (image above). As Marielle Lucenio says, “After 34 Years Of Philippines’ Agrarian Reform Law, Farmers Continue To Long For Own Land” (12 June 2022, LiC/S, licas.news, source of top image). A year ago, Ms Marielle says PH’s is “Asia’s longest-running land reform program, which turned 34 on Friday, 10 June, remains to be a ‘total failure,’ claimed land rights defenders in the Philippines.”

A son of a farmer and graduate of UP Los Baños, 1965, 2.36 weighted average grade, I say those protesters are only using their mouths, not their minds!

Rey Gamboa says, “Outdated Land Reform Law” (21 Feb 2023, PhilStar, philstar.com):

Let us bring back the science in farming. If we can make rice farming more productive by allowing larger sizes of land ownership, we will give small farmers a real chance to uplift their incomes, and in the process, boost rice production that will ultimately benefit the country’s goal of food security.

I like what Mr Gamboa says: “Let us bring back the science in farming.” And I see that we can do that if we resort to land consolidation.
(“Rolling Out Plan” from agroeconomics.az)

Calixto V Chikiamco says, “Land Consolidation Is The Answer” (02 Oct 2022, BusinessWorld, bworldonline.com):

… The primary binding constraint in the development of Philippine agriculture is land fragmentation. The answer to our agricultural woes is farm consolidation and modernization. Nothing else. All other efforts will fail…

However, creating bigger and better-managed farms is impossible under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law (CARL). Successful farmers are not allowed to expand beyond five hectares.

Repeal the CARL! Meanwhile, I say that beyond 5 ha, we can consolidate farmers’ lands via cooperatives. And that is why I said “Band Reform” above!

One of my favorite Pinoy bands is the Apo Hiking Society (the APO). I am now reading Joel Pablo Salud’s article, “APO Hiking Society And The Riotous Seventies” (03 Nov 2022, PhilStar Life, philstarlife.com). How did the APO not only survive but emerge at the top as a group? Mr Salud says:

“Awit ng Barkada” zeroed in on the general sadness of youth, its sporadic depressions, and whatever sense of failure they may be experiencing at the time. The song wasn’t pedantic or doctrinaire; just a simple reminder that the gang will be with you through thick and thin:

“Nandirito kami, ang barkada mong tunay
Aawit sa iyo
Sa lungkot at ligaya, hirap at ginhawa
Kami'y kasama mo.”

My free translation:

Here we are, your true friends
We sing for you
In sadness and gladness, difficulty and relief
We are with you.

Wikipedia says of the APO (en.wikipedia.org): “… Comprised of Danny Javier, Jim Paredes, and Boboy Garrovillo, “They are regarded as one of the pillars and icons of Original Pilipino Music.” The farmers’ friendly barkadas are waiting in the forms of cooperatives! I should know – I am a member of the Nagkaisa Multi-Purpose Cooperative (Nagkaisa) in my hometown Asingan, Pangasinan.

Magsasaka, magkaisa tayo sa barkadang paunlad!@517

Reboot Farmers’ Lives With “Angat Bukid” With “Angat Buhay” Sponsorship!

I, with a rich agriculturist mind – a teacher-graduate of UP Los Baños (1965), farmer’s son, and relentless self-learner including digital skills (starting Innocents Day 1985), now 82+ – am challenging Leni Robredo’s “Angat Buhay” group to sponsor an original program I call “Angat Bukid” for poor farmers of Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao to rise from poverty and stay up there! (Yes, I got about 500 images – such as the top half-image above – when I googled for “Life is better on the farm” – but “better” is not automatic; a better life is there only if the liver is prosperous!)

(“Farmer” from investphilippines.info, “Life is better” from shutterstock.com)

“Angat Bukid” as project proposal formed in my inventive mind when I read the Facebook sharing of Atty Leni Robredo about the Angat Buhay numeracy project “MathSaya” for schoolchildren; she shares:

So happy to see the first batch of graduates of our pilot Angat Bilang Center in Pasig City💖
This is our very first numeracy hub, where Angat Buhay, our partners, and the community work together to strengthen the math skills of our schoolchildren.
Grateful and so proud of everyone who are making this happen. Congratulations and a great job, too, to our students!

For learners, it is good to help the children early to learn math, because it’s not easy. Thus, All Kinds Of Minds has a list of six “Mathematics Difficulties” (allkindsofminds.org) – 6? Never mind!

For farmers, my proposed “Angat Bukid” is to demonstrate the use of the rotavator in creating an automatic layer of mulch all over the field – thus enabling the creation and simultaneously spreading of an organic mulch in any field of any size. That is organic fertilizer created automatically – this is organic agriculture automatically started by a machine!

With Angat Buhay as financial sponsor, “Angat Bukid” will involve initially 5 State Colleges and Universities of the Philippines (SCUs):

Mariano Marcos State University (MMSU);
Pangasinan State University (PSU);
Central Luzon State University (CLSU);
UP Los Baños College of Agriculture (UPLB-CA);
Bicol University College of Agriculture & Forestry (BU-CAF).

On location with the SCUs listed, the first half of the year will be spent with my demonstrating the “most intelligent” behavior of the rotavator – which is not stated in any manufacturer’s instructions. My personal experience of about 20 years, through my brother-in-law Enso Casasos, is that by adjusting the rotavator in a certain way, the machine will automatically produce an organic mulch – cutting & at the same mixing the soil with weeds and crop refuse, and spreading the mix as it rotavates all over the field.

As a concluding result of “Angat Bukid,” we will reinvent the rotavator so that every single time it is operated, without further instructions for the operator and without further adjustments on the machine, that automatic organic mulch will be produced. The reinvented rotavator will be registered at the Patent Office with “Angat Buhay” as owner of the patent.

Hereby, I hope Atty Leni Robredo will say “Yes!”@517

Reboot UP Los Baños’ RDE Ignorance Or Ignoring Farmer Poverty Simultaneously With Climate Change!

There was this “7^th International Conference on Climate Change 2023” with the UP Los Baños School of Environmental Science and Management (UPLB-SESAM) as partner (image above). I visited the Facebook page of UPLB-SESAM and it said the conference was held 9-10 Feb 2023 – it is now 14 April 2023, or 2 months later, and there is no news report on the significant event! This tells me that UP Los Baños is not that serious about Climate Change.

Relevantly, I note that a book – Changing Philippine Climate (Impacts On Agriculture And Natural Resources) – has been published with these major authors: Josefino C Comiso, Catalino A Blanche, Terry I Sangumba, Felino P Lansigan, and Ma Victoria O Espaldon.

Regina Mae C Ongkiko (OVCRE, ovcre.uplb.edu.ph) says of it:

[The book] was published through the University of the Philippines Press. [It] contains comprehensive details about the changes in climate and the influence[s] on the country’s environment, natural resources, agriculture, ecosystem, biodiversity, weather, and the quality of life of its inhabitants. Aside from these, risk management, resilience, and strategies for mitigation and effective adaptation especially in agriculture, forestry, grassland, livestock, fisheries, and health are also discussed.

I see that the book discusses “the changes in climate and the influence on the country’s … agriculture” but does not discuss the other way around: the influence of agriculture on climate! Why did they ignore the question of how Chemical Agriculture (CA) contributes greatly to Climate Change (CC) by the chemical fertilizers generating greenhouse gases (GHGs) that generate Climate Change? Farmers are guilty; farm experts are guilty!

What is the hope expressed by the book? Publisher UP Press says (UP Press, press.up.edu.ph):

Hopefully, this book will pave the way towards more collaboration related to battling the negative impacts of climate change.

I say: “Battling the negative impacts” is half-thinking – instead, preventing the Climate Change impacts of Chemical Agriculture is good thinking!

UP Press also says:

Climate change has been a hot topic for years now. Its impacts on civilizations have been dramatic and vivid. As generations come and go, more and more factors contribute to climate change. Now, human activity influences it as well. Its possible impacts [on] society have made our government, specifically the Department of Science and Technology… and the Climate Change Commission, concerned over the past years.

That “concern” is on the impacts of Climate Change and has not moved back to studying the factors contributing to Climate Change!

“Buy this book” says UP Press, the publisher (press.up.edu.ph):

[The] climate of our planet, including that of the Philippines, has been changing significantly during the last century primarily driven by anthropogenic activities.

“Anthropogenic” means “caused by humans” (TheFreeDictionary, thefreedictionary.com). Now then, why did the book not discuss those human activities that contribute to Climate Change? Asking as a friend!

We need a “climate of change” as SDG Watch Europe puts it (sdgwatcheurope.org). This time, it must begin with those who are teaching the farmers the agriculture that is causing Climate Change. This time it must begin inside UPLB!@517

Reboot IRRI! Reboot PhilRice! Not The Institutions Themselves – Just Their Ignorance Or Ignoring Organic Agriculture And Climate Change!

Why are the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) and International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) – both based in the Philippines – both ignoring Organic Agriculture (OA) and Climate Change (CC) simultaneously? As a graduate of UP Los Baños (1965), and blogger since 2000, I find that intellectually strange – why are they ignoring the human Goliath threat of CC?!

Notwithstanding, I just found a posted story by Charisma Love Gado-Gonzales, “Castle Of Competitive, Healthier Farmers And Consumers” (20 April 2021, PhilRice, philrice.gov.ph), saying Eleanor D Dominguez, Mayor of Castillejos, Zambales, is grateful for the assistance from the PhilRice initiative “RiceBis.” I find that the goal of the “Rice Business Innovations System Community” (RiceBis Community) is (philrice.gov.ph):

To create a pilot test development model for community transformation that is participatory, market-driven, and supported by a scientific production base to improve the competitiveness of rice-based farming communities.

Good! But not good enough – I can see that RiceBis would help farmers rise from poverty, but I cannot see how RiceBis can help farmers help defeat Climate Change and not exacerbate it with their chemical agriculture!

I cannot find an IRRI initiative that is similar to PhilRice’s RiceBis – nevertheless, both institutions are silent on Farmer Poverty and Climate Change and how Organic Agriculture can help solve the first and resolve the second.

Now then, it is a little embarrassing even for me but I would now like to refer both IRRI and PhilRice to a 5-year old report on “Organic Negros” via Gaby Novenario (11 May 2018, “How Negros Paved The Way For Organic Agriculture In The Philippines,” F&B Report, fnbreport.ph; webpage part of Inquirer)

To quote from the F&B story:

We couldn’t have done it on our own, says Ramon “Chin Chin” Uy Jr, founder of Fresh Start Organics and president of the Organic na Negros! Organic Producers and Retailers Association, on the organic movement of the Negros provinces.
(“Organic” from thehill.com)

It took the cooperation of the government, different stakeholders, and the consumers’ support of the organic movement for it to become successful. Had one of these [not been] in the mix, it wouldn’t have taken off.

Mr Uy Jr says:

Agritourism is a good way to promote organic farms. Negros has been the training center for farmers from all around the Philippines[;] and all around the island, there are training centers and tours that show these farmers what they can achieve. For many of them, seeing is believing. That was all it took.

The F&B story also says:

In 2013, the National Organic Agriculture Board [declared Batanes] as an organic [province]. There, farmers practice “traditional farming” but use organic methods for making fertilizers and pest control. A big project for the DA is assisting Vuhus Island in Sabtang, Batanes in their efforts to meet international organic standards and eventually become exporters of Vuhus organic beef tapa.

Enough lessons for today from Negros. IRRI and PhilRice – you can each be a father and not mum on solving Farmer Poverty and resolving Climate Change simultaneously!@517

Reboot Hybrid Rice (HR)! Reboot Rotavator! Organic Will Give HR Companies & Farmers High Yields Plus High Incomes – Simultaneously!

Above, “The Howard Rotavator That Could” – but its manufacturer, Kongskilde has failed to recognize the extra-commercial promise (kongskilde.com). On its webpage, Kongskilde enumerates 2 results but did not label “Excellent” – which I definitely do! With its slogan “Moving agriculture ahead,” Kongskilde has actually buried this machine! (Discontinued.)

The other manufacturers of rotavators are not any better! I have just googled “rotavator organic” and Google (Wednesday, 12 April 2023) said, “About 1,620,000 results (0.46 seconds).” I selected the webpages; here’s 8 websites:

Agri Farming: “Rotavator Uses In Agriculture” (agrifarming.in) – nothing said about organic.

Fieldking: “New Agriculture Machine Rotavator” (pinterest.ph) – zero organic.

Kirloskar Oil Engineers: “Rotary Tiller” (kirloskaroilengines.com) – no mention.

Poorti: “Bengal Rotavator” (poorti.net) – nothing organic.

Hi-Tech Agro Equipments: “Rotavator For Agriculture” (hitechagro.co.in) – zero mention of organic.

Jaswant: “Rotavator” (jaswantagro.com) – nada.

Vismaya Integrated Farm Tech: “Jaysan Rotavator” (vismayagroup.in) – zilch.

AgriCos: “Heavy Duty Rotavators / Rotary Tillers / Rototillers” (agricosrotarytiller.com) – none.

DemFarm: “Getting To Know The Rotavator And Its Benefits For Agricultural Land” (demfarm.id):

… A rotavator can also help to mix in fertilizer… Organic fertilizer like compost or manure is preferable…

(DemFarm doesn’t see that the rotavator can help create the organic fertilizer itself!)

Agria: “Soil Preparation” (agria.de):

In case of light up to middle-heavy grounds, … a finished seed or plant bed can be prepared in one process. The slower the rotavator will be driven and the quicker the rotavator shaft rotates, the finer the ground will be loosened. Furthermore organic material can be included ,,, (for example cover crops).

Close but not quite!

IRRI: “How To Prepare The Rice Field For Planting” (knowledgebank.irri.org) – The nearest good thing IRRI says is this: “Plow or [rotavate] the field to incorporate stubbles and hasten decomposition.” Almost! But IRRI’s knowledge bank does not discuss how the stubbles could contribute to soil fertility by plowing or rotavating.

What I want to say now is: We have not only to discover for ourselves the hidden talent of the rotavator – better, to reinvent it so that it automatically produces the organic mulch so that from thereon “rotavation” automatically means “organic mulching.” Organic Agriculture is the solution to Farmer Poverty and the resolution to Climate Change!

Farmer Poverty: Organic agriculture (OA) is very much cheaper than chemical agriculture (CA). OA: Low costs, high returns. If you have organic produce, more will buy from you and/or you will earn more.

Climate Change: OA does not generate greenhouse gases like CA does – no further rise in climate disasters.

The Philippines’ hybrid rice (HR) seed makers are Bayer Crop Science, Pioneer Hi-Bred Philippines, SL Agritech, Syngenta, and Yuan Longping High Tech Agriculture Co.
(“List” from mordorintelligence.com)

I invite any/all of HR companies in Manila to sponsor a million-dollar invention called “Organic Rotavator.” (I am speaking from actual experience of 20 years – via my brother-in-law, who followed my rotavator directions.) Monetary benefits will be with that HR investor. An investment of PhP1.7 million should be enough. Year 1 – Reinvented rotavator in field tests; Year 2 – new machine production. Let’s go!@517

Reboot Big Business In Small Farms In The Philippines! Let Us Be Encouraged By Them, Not Discouraged

For the first time in my life as an agriculturist (UP Los Baños graduate, BSA major in Ag Edu, 1965) and on record a self-proclaimer & pursuer of Communication for Development (ComDev, 1980; check out the last quarter issue of Habitat, the quarterly color magazine of Forest Research Institute where/when I was Editor in Chief) – I see and appreciate “Farm Consolidation” that makes possible the “Value Chain” – which means no one is too old to learn something new, thank God! (I am 82+.)

 In the Philippines, we have millions of small farms, and millions of poor farmers – that is because the Department of Agriculture (DA) has not consistently pursued Farm Consolidation to make possible the Value Chain. I know that it was the term of Secretary of Agriculture William Dar (Aug 2019-June 2022) when farm clustering was officially proclaimed and promoted, but he was replaced as Secretary and there went Farm Consolidation thataway!

As I view it, the “Value Chain,” according to Investopedia (investopedia.com, source of middle image), the system works for every sector:

A value chain is a series of consecutive steps that go into the creation of a finished product, from its initial design to its arrival at a customer's door. The chain identifies each step in the process at which value is added, including the sourcing, manufacturing, and marketing stages of its production.

Who adds to the value benefits from the chain – farmers ––> producers of consumer goods ––> consolidators ––> transporters ––> markets.

The Value Chain makes this not only possible but constantly proceeding: On one end, Producers benefitting and on the other, Consumers finding values to their advantages.

Patricia Mirasol says, “Consolidation Key For Small Farmers Seeking To Climb Value Chains” (10 April 2023, BusinessWorld, bworldonline.com). I am ignorant of value chains so I have to google.

Investopedia says its graphic (above, “Value Chain”) shows “a business model that describes the full range of activities” (“Value Chain,” Investopedia, investopedia.com):

A value chain is a series of consecutive steps that go into the creation of a finished product, from its initial design to its arrival at a customer's door.

Thus, to take full advantage of the value chain, a farm must become an integral part of a consolidation of farms. Thus the Facebook sharing (upper image) of William Dar (11 April 2023); Ms Patricia says Mr Dar said:

Small farms must overcome their disadvantages in terms of scale and access to specialized equipment by consolidating if they are to be competitive enough to supply large buyers of produce and even join international value chains…

Organizing into “clustered farms” can result in cooperative access to farm equipment, while… big buyers could open doors to farming techniques that result in better produce and more efficient cultivation….

There is the public-private sector initiative under the Go Negosyo framework of providing farmers and micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) access to the so-called 3 Ms – The Big Ones providing money, markets, and mentoring. To small farmers, I say: “Go Negosyo!”@517