CABATUAN, ILOILO- Harvesting the fruits of Research and Development, the community affairs gathered various stakeholders that could give potential opportunities to the agricultural industry.
The WESVAARDEC FIESTA 2017 or just an acronym of Western Agriculture Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development Consortium, Farms and Industry Encounters through the Science and Technology Agenda.
This event is the 2nd of 9th FIESTA series this year with the theme “ Advancing Science and Technology towards Inclusive Growth in Region 6” spearheaded by Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development( PCAARRD)- Department of Science and Technology (DOST).
Paho (a mango variety not Pajo, a district in Caloocan City) is derived from Ilonggo word that referred to a tropical fruit wchich is a variety of mango. its scientific name is “ Mangifera Indica” or just simply mangga in tagalog.
Simultaneous activity happened in places such as the local’s celebrate their food festival from August 18, 2017 until September 9, 2017.
Cabatuan is the second largest producer of mango in the Province of Iloilo. According to Ronilo O. Caspe, Municipal Mayor of the town.
In this province also, the Municipality of Leon marked as the biggest mango production while in the municipality of San Dionisio has a processing plant of frozen ripe mango through blast freeze or frozen that directly export to Japan.
In the whole island the sweetest mango is in the town of Guimbal, attested by the natives. Based on the data from Department of Agriculture Bureau of Plant Industry – Guimaras National Crop Research, Development and Production Support Center located at San Miguel, Jordan Guimaras, that various strains identified 10 in Guimaras Carabao Mango as follows:
Golez Strain, Ges 84, Efondo, Guimaras Super Galila, Ges 77, Ges 85, Tanaleon, JTA sweet, Fresco and Talaban.
Added to that some major diseases of mangoes that has damaged leaves, flowers, fruits, trunk, close- up symptom, seedling infected with wilt disease and fruit abnormalities called bioko and kasoy-kasoy can be control by means of bagging of fruits, hot water treatment to 52 to 55‘C degrees for 10 minutes and during packing avoid using organic materials such as banana leaves or rice straw, too much water is also discourage, the recommended space in planting is 10 x 10 meter, excess spraying of insecticides in full bloom can destroyed the pollinators that will harm the insect pollinators likes flies, wasp, bees, ants and others.
Even in the oldest time several strategy like bagging are some ways of our ancestors. Right now, more scientific approach using bagging technology is a vital component of good agricultural practices in mango to improve fruit quality that is competitive advantage. Economically, the domino effect of the increased production with better quality fruits assured high recovery of marketable fruits can be converted in monetary.
Historically, mangoes are one of our important agricultural products well accepted in the international market, the reason why the government puts extra effort to push the science community to do more research and development to make it much competitive than its ballooning competitors not just in ASEAN or the whole of ASIA but in Latin America, Europe, Africa and MENA (Middle East North Africa) (MJ Olvina-Balaguer, 09053611058, maryjaneolvina@gmail.com)
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CONSIDERED as the Philippines’ National fruit, Mango has been one of the showcase product in Region 6’s Farms and Industry Encounters through science and Technology Agenda (FIESTA) spearheaded by DOST’s Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCAARRD) held at the West Visayas State University in La Paz, Iloilo City.
The Western Visayas Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development consortium (WESVAARRDEC) a consortium of PCAARRD in western visayas hold its week long celebration tagged as “ASTIG” or Advancing Science and Technology towards Inclusive Growth which focuses on five (5) products and mango on August 23, 2017, the topics are on mango, technology forums with presentations on mango will be presented like integrated crops management, good agricultural practices, post harvest quality management, supply chain analysis, processing and trading trends.
Though not officially, Mango is currently the Philippines’ national Fruit but its more endemic in India and ironically was introduced in the country in the colonial times through the infamous gallon trade from Mexico.
Here in the country, the more famous places where mango is being planted are the provinces of Pangasinan, Zambales, Romblon, Iloilo, Guimaras and Zamboanga just to name a few and the more famous festivities attached with fame are the “Dinamulag Festival” in Iba, Zambales and the “Manggahan Festival” in Guimaras.
Mango varieties such as Piko, Supsupin (small Mango), and the Carabao Mango are quite abundant in all public markets, groceries and Departments store fruit stands everywhere in the country. The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) however has data that in the first quarter of this year, Mango production decreases while in Australia, only Guimaras Mangoes are the accepted Philippine mango Export.
Aside from Mango, Darag (Native Chicken), Bamboo, Muscovado and the 27th Regional Symposium on Research and Development Highlights which carries recent R&D outputs will likewise be presented by experts.
The Department of science and Technology (DOST) headed by Secretary Fortunato T. dela Peña is in full support of the efforts to uplift the lives of Filipino’s in the countryside through scientific, technological and innovative intervention on agriculture, aquatic and natural resources making PCAARRD and its regional consortium’s role in nation building very much important.(MJ Olvina-Balaguer, 09053611058, maryjaneolvina@gmail.com
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