DA Caraga Opens Banana Tissue Culture in Agusan del Sur

DA-Research and Experiment Station Chief Manuel Dormiendo cuts the 
ribbon with Talacogon Municipal Agriculturist Maresyl Caparoso
 during the blessing and inauguration of the banana tissue culture laboratory 
in Del Monte, Talagocon, Agusan del Sur.  

Talacogon, Agusan del Sur – Banana industry in Agusan del Sur were seen to further boom with the opening of the new banana tissue culture laboratory in the said area.

This after the blessing of the banana tissue culture laboratory located inside the compound of the Research and Experiment Station (RES) of the Department of Agriculture in Del Monte, Talacogon, Agusan del Sur last October 15, 2014. 

A project of the High Value Crops Development Program (HVCDP), one of DA’s banner programs, the 2.1 Million worth laboratory will be operated by DA-Del Monte RES under its chief Mr. Manuel Dormiendo.

Talacogon Municipal Agriculturist Maresyl Caparoso lauded the inauguration of the said laboratory and looking forward for more banana projects to be undertaken in their area.

“Since the lab is within our municipality, we can easily access any projects regarding banana for our farmers”, Caparoso said.

However, Dormiendo said that availing the tissue cultured banana planting materials will be on proposal based thereby its services is not only exclusive for Agusan del Sur but for the whole region.

Banana Tissue Culture Laboratory will mass produce quality banana planting materials to be distributed to the recipients. 

Banana is the second high value crops produced from Talacogon planted in 900 hectares with more or less 600 farmers. (Aurelius P. Arais/DA CARAGA Info Section)

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Wonders of Cassava

Have you eaten cassava? Maybe you answer yes or no, but definitely cassava is part of your life. 

Wondering why? Because most of the products you are using every day is made or partly made of cassava.

Cassava or balanghoy in Bisayan dialect is grown anywhere in the Philippines. 

It is one of the food sources for Filipinos either cooked steamed or in the form of value adding cassava food products such as suman, pitchi-pitchi, cakes and other delicacies. 

But do you know that aside from being a food source, cassava is an ingredient of various products you are using almost every day whether you are in the house, office or anywhere else.

For the girls, every time you are going to use cosmetics and beauty products, you are using cassava since it is one of the ingredients of manufacturing those products.

As for the drink lovers, you are gulping cassava since it is one of the ingredients in producing liquor. Cassava is also used as sweetener since it is used to make glucose, fructose, and lactose and as a substitute for sucrose in making beverages, jams and canned fruit drinks.

Amazingly, even the suits you are using had cassava. Cassava is used in yarn making and material planting for textile manufacturing. 

When you go shopping, the packaging of your favorite products is made up cassava. Cassava starch is combined with bio-degradable polymer to produce packaging materials.

In the kitchen, when you are using monosodium glutamate in your menu there is cassava, since it is prime ingredient in making MSG. Cassava is also widely used in food production such as noodles and seasoning sauces.

When you feel ill and going to take medicine, you are taking in cassava. Cassava is mixed with active pharmaceutical materials to make capsules and tablets.  

Even in building your house, it plays a vital role since good quality glue for plywood binding is made from cassava.

In helping your child in making their assignments and or in the office, the glue you are using is made from cassava. 

In your means of livelihood, when you are raising livestock, poultry or engaged in fishing industry, you are using cassava since it is the main ingredient for animal and aqua feeds.

In the field of transportation or industries, cassava is there. Cassava is used to produce bio-ethanol, an alternative to fuel.

This is just few of the long list of cassava utilization. To sum it up, cassava industry offers wide array of opportunities.

So if you are thinking of what particular crop to plant, consider planting cassava, indeed it is a promising industry.

Plant and grow cassava, rich source of food, feeds and bio-energy. (Aurelius P. Arais/DA- CARAGA)

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DA Caraga Propels Toward Farm Mechanization

Trento, Agusan del Sur – The AgriPinoy Corn Program of the Department of Agriculture Caraga is on full swing to further push for farm mechanization in the region.

Farm mechanization help make the farm more productive thus DA has lined –up an array of farm machineries including farm tractor, an interested cooperator could avail of through an easy counter parting scheme.

Since 2013, cooperator can avail the farm tractor through an 85:15 counter parting scheme unlike earlier it was on 50:50 scheme.

Based on inventory, since 2009 DA Regional Field Office had distributed a total of 21 farm tractors funded under AgriPinoy Corn Program including 1 unit grant of SAIS-BC,  a special project.

Recipients of the said farm tractors were local government units and farmer cooperatives in five provinces of Caraga region.

To fully optimize the advantages of the said farm machineries, DA RFO 13 conducted Farm Tractor Operators Training recently at DA CARIARC Trento, Agusan del Sur.

On the said activity, farm tractor operators were trained the proper methods of the operation and maintenance especially on trouble shooting in case of technical problems that may arise in their respective service areas.

Caraga Corn Program Coordinator Abel Wagas extended his gratitude to the two resource persons, Francisco Ete and Mark Twain Limbo of SuperTrade Enterprises, a private company who shared their expertise during the training.

One of the participants Ronelo Quiñonez of Bayugan City said that the training greatly enhanced his skills as farm tractor operator and thankful to DA for giving an opportunity for them (farm tractor operators) in the region to meet each other for the first time.

“Nalipay gyud kaayo ko kay first time pa gyud ni nagkatapok-tapok ming mga operator, talagsaon ra kaayo ni nga higayon ug unta masunda pa ni” (I am overwhelmed because this is the very first time that we operators were converged and hopefully more engagement to come), he said during the closing program.

Corn program is looking the possibility that farm tractor operators will be given a certificate possibly through the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) certification programs. (Aurell P. Arais/DA CARAGA Info Section)

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DA Caraga Empowers Women through Livelihood Training

Tandag City, Surigao del Sur - Recognizing the role of women in nation building, the Department of Agriculture Caraga conducted series of livelihood training for Rural 

Improvement Club (RIC) and 4H members and Extension Workers in the region.

The AgriPinoy Corn Program is currently promoting value adding products utilizing cassava through cooking demo livelihood training in which the second batch was held in Tandag City, Surigao del Sur last June 17, 2014.

Similar training was also conducted late last year in Butuan City and more training are currently on the pipeline.

Participants were taught how to cook various cassava recipes such as pudding, cheese, hagik-hik (suman), toron and pitchi-pitchi.

Regional Corn Program Coordinator Abel Wagas emphasized that food processing is an opportunity for the farmer’s wives and the women in general to help augment the income of the family.

He urged the participants to strengthen their associations to engage in cassava food processing wherein ready market is just around in the locality such as restaurants, canteens and more.

A participant expressed amazement after learning that cassava can be processed into more mouth tantalizing menu and vowed to add cassava recipes during special occasions or gatherings.

Cassava is a healthy food alternative.  Cassava roots are a rich source of carbohydrates which is an energy source.  It is generally considered to have a high content of dietary fiber, magnesium, sodium, riboflavin, thiamin, nicotinic acid, and citrate.

Cassava is traditionally utilized as food source in broiled, steamed and boiled forms. (Aurelius P. Arais/DA CARAGA Information Section)

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