GOVPH

Maguindanao has been striving to rise up from the past as can be seen on the way it opens its door for new developments. The province is actuallyhome to immense farmlands, a perfect place for agricultural innovation and a wealth of opportunities.

To help boost the production of farms in Maguindanao, the Department of Science and Technology- Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (DOST-ARMM) is providing much-needed assistance to hundreds of farmers.

Among the beneficiaries of DOST-ARMM’s support to farmers is the Al Rahman Farmers Multi-Purpose Cooperative. Just last year, the cooperative received the 1.2- million-peso Foliar Organic Fertilizer and Vermi Cast Production Project and the 555, 000-peso  Complementary Food Production Project from DOST- ARMM.

Located at Brgy. Manungkaling, Mamasapano, Maguindanao, Al Rahman is engaged in organic farming of varieties of plants, which started its operation in 2000. It covers 250 hectares of farmland and now has 180 members.

The grant received by Al Rahman includes upgrading of facilities and equipment for Foliar Organic Fertilizer and Vermi Cast Processing. Said equipment include a shredder machine for vermin composting, weighing scale, 50 units of vermin cast beds, shaving machine/ screen, hanging air dryer, pressure tank water system, bag closer shredder machine for foliar organic fertilizer production, fermentation jar/ container, and mechanized mixer and sealer.

Assistance from DOST-ARMM also includes product testing for standardization and product improvement, and technology trainings and training on Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and packaging and labeling.

On the other hand, the Complementary Food Project includes provision of technologies for the roll-out of complementary/ snack foods developed by the Food and Nutrition Research Institute. The establishment of processing plant for complimentary food thru the assistance is based on GMP and Quality Assurance standards which will be operated for institutional and commercial markets.

Al Rahman Chair Modrika A. Masukat assures that the coop’s products are all organic, and that the coop promotes organic farming The cooperative is also providing readily available organic fertilizer for the farmers in the province to help farmers restore the natural fertility of the soil and reduce farm production cost.

“All (of) the products of Al Rahman are Halal as they are into organic farming. The coop is on the process of Halal certification.They are under the One-Stop-Shop Product Development (of TecknolohiyangPangkabuhayan), and they are now in the stage of production. After that, we do the packaging and labeling, then the Halal certification,” said DOST-ARMM Secretary Myra Mangkabung.

Apparently, production by the cooperative was temporarily stopped in the past monthsdue to the Mamasapano incident that happened last January this year. But the operation has now resumed.

“That incident has already passed and we have moved on. The important thing now is to produce more crops and help our farmers,” said Masukat who just got back from hajj the day before the project visit at Al Rahman.

After the acquisition of assistance from DOST-ARMM, Al Rahman earns around P200, 000 per harvest of its organic rice.

As of now, the products of the coop are being sold in the local markets within the province of Maguindanao. The local government, on the other hand, buys the coop’s products for feeding programs.

“We will show our fellow Filipino that Maguindanao is not a violent place through these kinds of interventions. There are definitely lots of rooms for peace and innovation in our beautiful province,” Sec. Mangkabung stated. (By ROMELIE JANELLE MARANAN, S&T Media Service, DOST-STII)

Written by Administrator   
Tuesday, 27 October 2015 01:10