BONTOC, Mountain Province – One hundred farmers belonging to three clustered farmer’s cooperative and association (FCAs) in Mountain Province are the initial beneficiaries of farm equipment from the Department of Agriculture Cordillera (DA-CAR) under the Pump Irrigation System for Open Source (PISOS) project of the Rice program.
Ramon Calde, Board of Director of the Mountain Province Heirloom Rice (MPHR) clustered FCA in Barlig and Bauko received 2 units of pumps and engine sets amounting to ₱138,000 to be used by the 73 members of the clustered FCA.
The Otucan clustered FCA, also belonging to MPHR, received a water pump and engine set worth ₱69,000. Aside from the water pump and engine sets, the beneficiaries were also supplied with water tanks and hose as part of the PISOS project.
Farm clustering and consolidation has been institutionalized by the department for better production and marketing negotiations, implemented also by other commodity programs on rice, high-value crops, including coconut, sugarcane, banana, coffee, and vegetables.
Under farm clustering and consolidation, intervention assistance provided by the government are optimized, that aims to provide more farmers, fishers, and their families with efficient and better service to increase their productivity and income. By JTLlanes
