The Board of Investments (BOI) said it discusses possible cooperation with AgriSpecialist Inc. (ASI), an organic fertilizer company, on the commercialization of biofertilizers in the Philippines.
ASI president Mario Labadan Jr. said farmers should be aware of the benefits of using biofertilizers.
Bio-N, a locally-developed biofertilizer by University of the Philippines Los Banos-National Institute of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, has the potential to revitalize crops yields, raising production by 11 percent.
The product offers significant cost savings, with five to six 200-gram sachets of Bio-N replacing two 50-kilogram bags of urea per hectare of rice, translating into P10,000 in savings for farmers.
Both BOI and ASI noted the importance of integrating industrial partners early in the research and development process. ASI has an existing biofertilizer manufacturing facility in Sta. Rosa, Laguna.
The facility could be the first commercial-scale manufacturing plant for biofertilizer, and its planned expansion could accommodate 100 percent of the country’s biofertilizer requirement for the lands planted with rice and corn.
Former UP president and national scientist Emil Javier cited the effectiveness of public-private partnerships in maximizing the potential of local biofertilizer research and development for long-term benefits to Filipino farmers.
The BOI committed to intensive information dissemination and education campaigns for farmers, aiming to bridge the gap between traditional fertilizers and biofertilizers.
