About 5.9 million disease-free root crop planting materials were distributed to farmers in Region 8.
The root crop distribution is being implemented by the Philippine Root Crop Research and Training Center (PhilRootcrops) at the Visayas
State University, which began as a quick response initiative to assist communities affected by the COVID-19 lockdown.
The project, “Enhanced Distribution, Nursery Establishment, and Product Utilization of Root Crops in Region 8 to Mitigate the Impact of COVID-19,” is funded by the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-PCAARRD).
The initiative is under the Council’s Good Agri-Aqua Livelihood Initiatives Towards National Goals (GALING PCAARRD) Kontra COVID-19
Program, which aims to help alleviate the situation in COVID-19 affected communities around the country through technology-information
sharing, food product distribution, and provision of food production technologies and livelihood opportunities derived from its various R&D projects.
Project Leader Marlon Tambis of PhilRootcrops reported that his team had already distributed 4.2 million sweet potato cuttings, 1.7 million
cassava cuttings, 3,000 ‘ubi’ plantlets, and 1,000 taro planting materials.
He also said that the establishment of seven new nurseries-on top of the 11 existing nurseries being maintained by the team- enabled them to support the massive distribution of root crop planting materials.
The project hopes to contribute to food availability and provide additional sustainable income sources to farmer-beneficiaries by increasing access to root crops planting materials in the region.
Recently, the project had conducted training on root crop production, management, and utilization that benefited 1,355 farmers.
The project team, because of high demand for root crops, is considering distributing root crops and developing a value chain in other areas such as in Regions 7 and 13.
Crops Research Division Director Leilani D. Pelegrina expressed her appreciation to the PhilRootcrops team and hopes that output under the GALING PCAARRD Kontra COVID-19 Program would continue to strengthen and sustain the Council’s efforts in providing sustainable livelihoods among communities.