April 10, 2010 10:31 pm
MANILA, April 10 – Amidst onslaught of climate change, coffee-growing provinces like Aurora, Bohol and Mindoro are getting a boost from Department of Agriculture (DA) and Nestlé Philippines Inc. (NPI) through a joint project involving various training programs, farm planting modes and expansion plans for the sub-sector.
Establishing a coffee mother plant garden and nursery is one of DA’s targets to raise the coffee industry’s competitiveness.
As part of the coffee development program this year, the target is the expanding farms in Bohol to become a productive 300-hectare coffee plantation.
Currently, a total 9,000 coffee seedlings in Bohol have been distributed and transplanted in key municipalities there.
Based on the High Value Commercial Crops (HVCC) Program reports, a total of 41,675 seedlings were planted in Mindoro province.
This accounts for 25 percent of the 100 hectares allotted for the coffee production project there.
In Aurora, a total of 500 coffee seedlings were already placed in the mother plant garden.
DA officials expect to establish major coffee plantations by 2011, through its intervention programs.
The programs include the Coffee Production Technology Training workshop in Tagum City, Davao del Norte province.
This workshop was conducted in two batches last September 2009 and January this year.
The workshop included lectures on economic importance of coffee, plantation care and maintenance of nursery, harvesting and post harvesting, quality control and marketing.
Through a memorandum of agreement (MOA), DA and NPI since last year supported coffee farmers in expanding and enriching their farms to transform these into coffee plantations.
The MOA, which took effect on July 11 last year, was signed by then DA Secretary Arthur Yap and Doreswamy Nandkishore, NPI’s chairman and chief executive officer. (PNA)
RMA/CJT/PR

http://balita.ph/2010/04/10/da-nestle-tie-up-to-support-local-coffee-industry/