DA – Pesticides Protect Crops From Pests, What About The Consumers?

As the son of a farmer who helped grow rice and vegetables to earn money for my BS Agriculture from UP Los Baños, graduating 1965, I know personally that farmers spray pesticides against insects and weeds. But I did not know anything about pesticide residues – that was not studied in class.

(top image of Filipino farmer spraying[1]from Dreamstime.com)

Now comes the Department of Agriculture at the Cordillera Administrative Region (DA-CAR) showing customer concern as ANN reports on Facebook, “DA-CAR Eyes To Establish Pesticide Residue Analysis Laboratory In La Trinidad” (28 September 2021):

The Department of Agriculture eyes to establish a Pesticide Residue Analysis Mini Laboratory at Benguet AgriPinoy Trading Center (BAPTC), La Trinidad, Benguet to promote food safety to the consuming public. This was one of the highlights during the DA Food Safety Program meeting last 23 September 2021 at the RCPC Hall, Guisad, Baguio City.
(lower image)

RCPC is the Regional Crop & Protection Center of DA-CAR. The work of the mini lab is to “identify the (levels) of pesticide residue of various highland vegetables (delivered) daily at BAPTC.”

Guilty! In the 1960s, I was myself spraying pesticides on our rice and vegetables and I did not know about pesticide residues. I sprayed with abandon, not realizing the chemical entered and became residue in the food I protected from the pests but not myself!

The Regulatory Division will initially procure 50 sets of Rapid Test Kit (RTK) and a small refrigerator. The Region Crop and Protection Center under the Integrated Laboratory Division will provide additional (reagents) for RTK and various (trainings) on Pesticide Residue Analysis and (conduct meetings with) Local Government Units on implementation of Rapid Pesticide Residue Screening (in) all trading centers, including (an) information and education campaign.

Not mentioned, but I am looking at that campaign as conducted with information & communication technologies (ICT) and ICT products.

Nonetheless, because I am sure the pesticide residue screening can protect only so much the consumers of vegetables from the Cordillera, I say:

The DA should now embark on a much bigger program: Farmer-Friendly Farming (3 Fs): Zero chemical pesticides used.

Pests love monocultures, especially when large-scale: cabbage only, corn only, onions only, rice only, sugarcane only, tobacco only.

For the 3 Fs, considering Tradition, Science & Sense (the title of my blog), I would recommend any combination of these:

1.     Companion planting

2.     Intercropping

3.     Multiple cropping

4.     Trap cropping

5.     Use of organic pesticides.

Companion planting[2] – Growing snap beans + corn; bush sitao+ corn or mungo or sorghum; cabbage or cauliflower or broccoli + garlic + onion (ATI.da.gov.ph).

Intercropping[3] – Growing sugarcane with rice (PNA.gov.ph).

Multiple cropping[4] – Growing any combination of: banana, black pepper, cacao, coconut, coffee, papaya (Semanticscholar.org).

Trap cropping[5] – “Corn is also used as trap crop or sacrificial plant in vegetable growing areas” (Permaculture Research Philippines).

And yes, if you insist on pesticides, use a plant-basedpesticide spray, such as garlic spray or red pepper spray[6] (Homeguides.sfgate.com).

Definitely then, 3 Fs will give us tasty & healthy foods!@517

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[1]https://www.dreamstime.com/royalty-free-stock-photos-spraying-pesticide-philippines-image27900718

[2]https://ati.da.gov.ph/rtc10/sites/default/files/BIG_0.pdf

[3]https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1114193

[4]https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/8a2e/3cdc93b71823e30079d7c635ba53f9ae64e8.pdf

[5]

[6]https://homeguides.sfgate.com/homemade-organic-pesticide-vegetables-45069.html

Brown Rice – The Thought Is Good, The Taste Is Bad!

I am an Agriculturist, a 1965 graduate of the University of the Philippines College of Agriculture, now UP Los Baños, but I don’t remember “brown rice” being discussed in class. Not that important?

3 decades plus later, when I was Editor In Chief of the Philippine Journal of Crop Science(PJCS), early 2000s, at the PhilRice Los Baños Station where I was holding office courtesy of Diego Ramos, Station Chief, I remember retired PhilRice Executive Director SRO and retired IRRI scientist Cesar Mamaril talking expertly and enthusiastically about brown rice. They talked about having to soak before cooking – but not about the taste.

Today, I can tell anyone: Brown rice? There is no love lost between us.

Here comes Mervalyn Tomas with her article at the PhilRice website: “Study: More Filipino Consumers Aware Of Health Benefits Of Low-GI Rice[1]” (27 August 2021, Philrice.gov.ph). “GI” is glycemic index. According to the Mayo Clinic, “The glycemic index is a system of assigning a number to carbohydrate-containing foods according to how much each food increases blood sugar[2].” Medical application – If you suffer from high blood pressure, or have a tendency to it, eat brown rice instead of white rice for your own sake.
(lower image[3]from Xtra Foods)

I’m glad that in fact I am “low blood” – which means I don’t have to eat brown rice.

I know brown rice is nutritious. Jillian Kubala, MS, RD says, “Brown rice is a food often associated with healthy eating” (23 May 2018, “Is Brown Rice Good For You[4]?” Healthline, Healthline.com). Ms Jillian says the benefits of brown rice are:

1.     It’s nutritious – 1 cup of brown rice contains 216 calories, 44 gm carbs, 3.5 gm fiber, 1.8 gm fat, 5 gm protein. You also get copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, niacin, pantothenic acid, phosphorus, pyridoxine, selenium. thiamin, and zinc.

2.     Helps lose weight – Since fiber keeps you fuller longer, you consume less calories, eventually weigh less.

3.     Benefits heart – From a study of 560,000 people: Those who ate the most dietary fiber had 24-59% lower risk of developing heart disease, cancer, and respiratory disease.

4.     Prevents diabetes – From a study of 197,000 people: “swapping just 50 grams of white rice for brown rice per week was associated with a 16% lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes.”

Thank you! But I still don’t like the taste of brown rice! So what should I do?

Ms Jillian lists several ways to consume brown rice not as plain brown rice. A few of these are:

1.     Make a grain bowl for lunch with brown rice, veggies and protein.

2.     Top brown rice with eggs, salsa, avocados and black beans for a savory breakfast.

3.     Use brown rice instead of white rice when making stir-fries.

4.     Instead of white pasta, incorporate brown rice into your favorite soup recipes.

5.     Use brown rice in your curry recipes.

6.     Swap white pasta with brown rice pasta.

7.     Sauté brown rice with olive oil and garlic for a flavorful carbohydrate option.

Wonderful!@517

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[1]https://www.philrice.gov.ph/study-more-filipino-consumers-aware-of-health-benefits-of-low-gi-rice/?fbclid=IwAR1YIhBn8fo1ynnRaNX43e4-pRtl9Z686ya6CkCe03KoiQSuvMMQVu40Z5U

[2]https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/glycemic-index-diet/art-20048478

[3]https://www.facebook.com/xtrafoodscares/posts/-white-rice-or-brown-rice-here-are-some-of-the-healthy-benefits-of-both-by-mealp/3277691442298991/

[4]https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/is-brown-rice-good-for-you

Welfare Vs Fare Well – PH Agriculture Seen By Fictionist, Businessman & Me

I agriculturist & warrior writer welcome literary & worrier writer Yvette Tan as she makes known her wish for the Filipino farmer to “thrive” and not just “survive” (27 August 2021, “Agriculture Should Be Treated As An Industry, Not As Welfare[1],” Manila Bulletin).
(Welfare image[2] from iStock)

Although she does not make it clear at the outset, she is only quoting businessmind Julius Barcelona who says, “Agriculture should be treated as an industry, not as welfare.” Mr Barcelona is VP of the Philippine Seed Industry Association. His LinkedInaccount says he is “Working to enrich the life of the Filipino farmer.” I say, “Excellent!”

Unhappily for me, I find neither in Ms Tan’s 770-worded Bulletin piece nor Mr Barcelona’s LinkedIn posts how each or both propose to work it out so that agriculture is treated as industry and not as welfare.

Ah, but I agree with Ms Tan and Mr Barcelona that “agriculture should be treated as an industry, not as welfare!”

I forgive Ms Tan and Mr Barcelona if they are not digital and both are unaware that current PH Secretary of Agriculture William Dar, who assumed the headship of the Department of Agriculture (DA) 2 years ago, has been trying to literary move Heaven & Earth to be in the forefront of bringing the millions of farm families out of poverty into prosperity – and staying in there!

I now beg both Ms Tan and Mr Barcelona to read at least this single newspaper article by ANN that appeared on 23 June 2021: “Dar Leads Agriculture Sector To The Right Direction[3]” (Author Not Named, Manila Times). Among other things, Mr Dar says, "We must apply the 'OneDA' agenda to transform the sector by employing major strategies towards a modern and industrialized Philippine agriculture."

The OneDA agenda is built on four pillars: Consolidation, Modernization, Industrialization, and Professionalization.

On the 4 pillars, ANN says:

Under Consolidation are the following strategies or components: Establishment of Bayanihan Agri-clusters; Collective action/Cooperatives Development; Province-Led Agriculture and Fisheries Extension Systems; Mobilization and Empowerment of Partners; Diversification; and Credit Support.

Under Modernization… are: Technology and Innovation including Digital Agriculture; Farm Mechanization and Infrastructure Investments; Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation Measures; and Food Safety and Regulations.

Under Industrialization are: Development of Agri Industrial Business Corridors; Global Trade, Export Development and Promotion; and Postharvest, Processing, Logistics and Marketing Support.

Finally under Professionalization, the strategies are: Agriculture Career System; Education and Training for Agribusiness Management; Youth and Women Engagement; and Ease of Doing Business and Transparent Procurement.

Me, more than 2 years ago, I myself was already writing about what Mr Dar’s Servant Leadership thoughts were about the DA. Try: “Frank A Hilario Investigates The Paradigms & Paradigm Shifts Of William Dar[4]” (27 August 2019, Ani Kita).

Ms Tan and Mr Barcelona, now knowing the above that the DA under Mr Dar has planned to do/is doing, today tell me, how do you plan to help the DA help the Filipino farm families thrive instead of simply survive?@517

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[1]https://mb.com.ph/2021/08/27/agriculture-should-be-treated-as-an-industry-not-as-welfare/?fbclid=IwAR3Fz-Xhsdzia2SZ4GYRuIDq5SABSmW2A1gceILrsL3t6oB7SadnBFbOKt8

[2]https://www.istockphoto.com/photos/social-welfare

[3]https://www.manilatimes.net/2021/06/23/supplements/dar-leads-agriculture-sector-to-the-right-direction/1804223

[4]https://ianikita.blogspot.com/2019/08/frank-hilario-investigates-paradigms.html?view=flipcard

Filipinos, 2 Can Play The Game – 2021 US Open 9-Ball, Where Carlo Biado Is Champion & Wife Niecky Quebec Is Winner!

This is the true story of Filipinos Carlo Biado and wife Niecky Quebecwho actually helped him win Sunday, 19 September, the 2021 US Open 9-Ball Championship at Harrah’s Resort in Atlantic City, New Jersey, USA. Prize: $50,000 (P2.5 million).

His opponent, Singapore’s Aloysius Yapp, never had any remote idea he was fighting a Filipino Husband & Wife Team!

This is the Carlo Biado 9-Ball Championship story nobody else is telling you.

First, I am proud to say I and Carlo are Ilocano, and we have roots from Rosario, La Union. I used to play pool myself – we called it “billiards” – until college in the early 1960s. I was an A-player too: I could defeat you with a “love set,” meaning, you never get to play while I pocket all the balls and finish the game all by myself! Magic? You need nerves, plus experience plus an experimental mind like that of the incomparable billiards “Magician” Efren “Bata” Reyes, another Filipino.

Philip Matel says (23 September 2021, “New Champ Carlo Biado Made Magic In US Open Thanks To Fellow Filipino Efren 'Bata' Reyes[1],” TV5, espn.com):

Newly crowned US Open Pool champion Carlo Biado has billiards legend Efren "Bata" Reyes to thank for serving as an inspiration in his momentous victory.

Philip is incorrect! Carlo made magic in the US Open, thanks to his wife Niecky! Philip himself says:

In the early goings of the contest, Yapp took a commanding five-rack lead, 8-3, which rattled the Filipino.

However, a familiar face in the crowd soothed Biado's nerves, and he then found the resolve to respond.

Carlo responded with new resolve and went on to win the championship! What would he have done without his wife encouraging him right there and then?!

Mark Giongcosays, “Down, 3-8, Biado won 10 straight racks to claim the prestigious title” (19 September 2021, “Carlo Biado Rallies To Win US Open 9-Ball Title,” Sports, Inquirer.net). “The 37-year-old Biado became the first Filipino to win the tournament since Efren “Bata” Reyes in 1994.”

So, I say, actually a Husband & Wife Team jointly won the 2021 US Open 9-Ball Championship!

(Lesson: Husband, love your wife. Wife, love your husband. Do things together whenever you can!)

(Now then, you look up again. From their Facebook page, the lower image shows husband & wife doing their Tik Tok – with love.)

The wife gave her husband encouragement when he most needed it!

Philip Matelsays Carlo said:

My wife was there in front of the crowd. She told me to relax and not think about the bad chances I got with the ball. I just needed to play my game. I felt I was going to win, and she told me the same thing before playing. That's why I felt good.

Now, watch!

Biado-Yapp, 3-8
Biado-Yapp, 4-8
Biado-Yapp, 5-8
Biado-Yapp, 6-8
Biado-Yapp, 7-8
Biado-Yapp, 8-8
Biado-Yapp, 9-8
Biado-Yapp, 10-8
Biado-Yapp, 11-8
Biado-Yapp, 12-8
Biado-Yapp, 13-8!

Total: 11 love sets. “Lucky 13?” No, “Gritty 13!”@517

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[1]https://tv5.espn.com/story/_/id/32261236/biado-made-magic-us-open-thanks-bata

One Lesson Ignored In The Chaos Caused By Covid – Health Begins At Home!

Today’s Reminder: Always, we have been our first line of defense against sickness. Yes: Now, “health” refers to “body, mind, spirit and soul” taken together. Yes: Health begins at home.

(“Body, Mind, Spirit, Soul” image[1] by Mimi Clark, Gaia Blooming, Pinterest)
(“Health Begins At Home” image[2] from CDC-TV, CDC.gov)

I myself did not realize that until today when I saw Irma Santos Paulme’s Facebook sharing 14 September 2021:

We, the healthcare workers, are not your frontliners any longer. We are (now) your LAST LINE OF DEFENSE.
YOU, my fellow people, are the frontliners now.
The war has shifted to the community and it is up to you. This cannot be won in the confines of the hospital…
Dr B Calinawagan
Let this sink in.

Thank you, Dr B Calinawagan, whoever you are! I see: Your family name means Enlightenment. Thank you for enlightening us even if it’s 2 years late! We must now pay attention to ourselves more than ever.

Now, using Chrome, I googled for “health begins at home” and got 20,600 results. That many.

I browse. I choose Virginia Laird who says, “Good Mental Health Begins at Home[3]” (The Joint Chiropractic):

Health and wellness experts admit that managing your health has a great deal to do with what you eat. For this reason it is suggested that you consume a well-balanced diet. This is generally a diet full of fruits and vegetables, and lean proteins including chicken and fish.

Fruits, vegetables, lean proteins.

Allanna Treweeksays (10 October 2019, “Health Begins At Home[4],” Melville Osteopathy): “We could ask ourselves: “what can I do right here, right now?”

What one small change could you make today – drink a lemon water upon rising, add an extra glass or two of water during the day or eat a piece of fruit…

Environment
Maybe… without realizing (it), you’ve been cooped up inside for hours – take a step outside and take three deliberate breaths of fresh air or lift up your arms and stretch…

Step outside and lift up your arms and stretch…

Emotions
Simply acknowledging what your feelings are is a key factor in emotional wellbeing… ask yourself – how am I actually feeling right now – can help shift stuck energy and restore a bit of flow to your day….

Acknowledging: How am I feeling right now?

Relationships
… Something as little as a quick phone call with a dear friend or cuddle with a fur baby can provide an instant reset to lower levels of stress.

A quick phone call…

Mind, thoughts & meditation
Our brain is already a pretty busy organ so if we can take the load off – even for a moment, it’s going to appreciate the respite. Three breaths while paying focused attention to the inflow and outflow of air can be enough to short-circuit looping thoughts and provide a moment of peace.

Three breaths.

Or, google or read or look for just 1 tip to keep you happy. I already found mine: blogging every single day!@517

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[1]https://www.pinterest.ph/pin/573505333772019802/

[2]https://www.cdc.gov/cdctv/environmentalhealth/health-home.html

[3]https://www.thejoint.com/utah/orem/university-mall-45006/281311-good-mental-health-begins-at-home

[4]https://melvilleosteopathy.com.au/health-begins-at-home/

Mangrove Swamp – Responsibilities Of Fishers & Responsibilities Of Media

Abundant fish, crabs & other crustaceans are what you will always find in a mangrove swamp – if the fishermen observe religiously conservation practices.

(Bohol mangrove forest bottom image[1] from Boholphilippines.com)

I have had firsthand experiences with mangroves and appreciate their natural wealth that people can enjoy, varieties of sea foods and recreation. I was Editor In Chief of the Forest Research Institute (FORI) from 1975 to 1981; for the 3 FORI publications – monthly newsletter Canopy, quarterly technical journal Sylvatrop, and quarterly color magazine Habitat – I had to travel with my staff to Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao to cover and/or check the progress of research and/or developments in forest ecosystems. So we saw and took photographs of, among other sites, mangroves.

If you didn’t know, among other things, says the US National Ocean Service[2]:

Mangrove forests stabilize the coastline, reducing erosion from storm surges, currents, waves, and tides. The intricate root system of mangroves also makes these forests attractive to fish and other organisms…

And many of those fish and organisms are food for us humans. Oh, I love the giant crabs! (inset crab image[3] from The Fish Site)

Now then, considering mangroves, under Manila Bulletin’s Environment And Nature, Specials section, on 14 July 2021 appears this article: “NGCP’s Mangrove Project Now A Protected Area And Ecotourism Site” – a very welcome piece of news if you ask me.  Written by ANN (Author Not Named), all 397 words of it, published with 3 huge pictures (the first one seen uppermost), that piece of news is very heartening for me who visited several mangrove areas in the late 1970s as I worked for FORI. When fishermen exploit the fisheries resources of a mangrove with careful attention to conservation, avoiding overfishing, the mangrove swamp with its natural wealth will outlast all those fishermen!

Unlike in the topmost photograph, where you see the little family is planting some seedlings, that’s all. It’s all water up to the trees in the background. There is a lot of work to do – and plenty of years to wait for the mangrove trees to grow and encourage fishes, crustaceans etc to live there and multiply. 

Where the photograph comes from, the title of the feature story is this: “NGCP’s Mangrove Project Now A Protected Area And Ecotourism Site.” 3 huge photographs are included, none of them showing any mangrove visitor – none showing mangrove trees either!

The article says members of a fishers’ association were engaged to plant initially 50,000 mangrove seedlings for the reforestation project in 2018.

After three years of continuous management and monitoring, the site is now home to more than 46,000 mangroves of three different species.

Do you see a mangrove swamp in this picture? Neither do I!

And there is no mention of mangrove denizens like crabs and crustaceans having come back – this is “an ecotourism site”?

The last part of this essay is a lesson for journalists as well as feature editors of media: If you don’t show what you’re talking about, what are you talking about?!@517

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[1]https://www.bohol-philippines.com/mangrove-forests.html

[2]https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/mangroves.html

[3]https://thefishsite.com/articles/philippines-reopens-trade-in-juvenile-mangrove-crabs

We Need Modern-Day Heroes In The Philippines!

Ramon Yedra’s Facebook sharings are many and multi-dimensional; sometimes they are out of my world, but I still admire him for being forthright as well as civil. They don’t make them like they used to anymore!

31 August 2021 is the 114th birth anniversary of PH President Ramon Magsaysay. Here is Mr Yedra on Mr Magsaysay and “Rebuilding A Nation,” which is the essence of his 1953 presidential inaugural speech: “We have a glorious past. Now we must build a future worthy of that past.”

This is from “Inaugural Address of President Magsaysay, 30 December 1953[1]”:

All too often, however, we speak of Rizal – and of Del Pilar, Bonifacio, Mabini, and our host of heroes – as if their work were done, as if today their spirit had ceased to have any meaning or value to our people. The truth is that we need their spirit now more than ever. We need it to complete the work (that) they began.

If you ask me, an Ilocano writer-thinker, PH’s National Hero Jose Rizal was for Filipino independence of thoughts under the rule of the Spanish crown. Why did he write his valedictory poem in Spanish? Because he wanted the Spanish rulers as well as the educated Filipinos to understand and appreciate that if the Philippines were under Spain as a province, we Filipinos could rule ourselves to greatness! (Friendly warning: This thought is from me, not any illustrious historian of the Philippines, Filipino or foreigner.)

“We need their spirit now more than ever.” I take that to be “the spirit of nationhood, one nation moving forward in life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

We need men of integrity and faith like Rizal and Del Pilar; men of action like Bonifacio; men of inflexible patriotism like Mabini. We need their zeal, their self‑reliance, their capacity for work, their devotion to service, their ability to lose themselves in the common cause of building a nation.

Rizal and Marcelo H Del Pilar wrote in favor of the Filipino; Andres Bonifacio and Gregorio Del Pilar fought for the Filipino. Apolinario Mabini guided the revolutionaries with his Roman Catholic if revolutionary thoughts. They were zealous in what they did; they relied mostly on themselves; they worked hard, very hard; they were devoted to service to country – they lost themselves “in the common cause of building a nation.”

2021 is the “Year of Filipino Pre-Colonial Ancestors” by virtue of Proclamation No 1128, s 2021. Also in this year, we commemorate the Philippine part in the achievement of science and humankind in circumnavigating the planet for the first time. Central in this commemoration is the 500th anniversary of the Victory at Mactan on 27 April 2021. These and more are collectively known as the “2021 Quincentennial Commemorations in the Philippines” by virtue of Executive Order No 103 (2020).

But we must move on! Like, the poor are still mired in poverty – in spirit & economic justice. We need more heroes today. How do you become a hero, whoever you are? First simple-complicated rule: “Love your enemies!”@517

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[1]https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/1953/12/30/inaugural-address-of-president-magsaysay-december-30-1953/

Original: “Abundant World Bamboo-Crops Day” – Made In The Philippines!

“World Bamboo Day is about all things bamboo: sustainability, environment, ecology, science, architecture, art, music, food, housing, habitat, restoration, aesthetics, economy, utilization, everything[1].”

Count those – I did not realize so much value from the bamboo! The above is a quote, here is another from ANN on the website of the World Bamboo Organization, “World Bamboo Day” (Author Not Named, undated, Worldbamboo.net):

Since 2009, we have been celebrating World Bamboo Day to increase the awareness (on) bamboo globally. Where bamboo grows naturally, bamboo has been a daily element, but its utilization has not always been sustainable due to exploitation. The World Bamboo Organization aims to bring the potential of bamboo to a more elevated exposure – to protect natural resources and the environment, to ensure sustainable utilization, to promote new cultivation of bamboo for new industries in regions around the world, as well as promote traditional uses locally for community economic development.

It is estimated that there are more than two billion hectares – that is nearly 5 billion acres – of deforested and degraded land around the world waiting for human intervention to save it, to nourish it, and breathe new life into it. The health of our planet needs us to do something big – as soon as possible.

We should choose the bamboo for fast reforestation! Why?

Bamboo is resilient & adaptable – with immense biodiversity. Bamboo species can restore land. Their unique characteristics of quick growth, extensive root systems, and pioneer spirit can reduce erosion, stabilize slopes, absorb heavy metals, create shade, harbor wildlife, recycle carbon dioxide, and clean the air. Planting and managing sustainable bamboo forests (allow) for multiple social benefits, including rural development (improved housing), agroforestry products (list which includes nutritional food and alternative fiber), with the big bonus of climate mitigation.

Shock! 1975-1981, I was Editor In Chief of the 3 publications of the Forest Research Institute (FORI) based at UP Los Baños in Laguna: monthly newsletter Canopy, quarterly technical journal Sylvatrop, and quarterly color magazine Habitat– but, including my literature search on/for FORI articles, I never read anything about bamboos as rich as those 77 words I quoted above (with a little editing)!

Idea: Let’s grow bamboo in lowland and upland farms!

“Bamboo is flexible, bending with the wind but never breaking, capable of adapting to any circumstance. It suggests resilience, meaning that we have the ability to bounce back even from the most difficult times[2]” – Ping Fu, “A Life In Two Worlds,” Penguinrandomhouseaudio.com.

Filipino farms should be growing bamboos along the sides of eroding fields. The main crop is not the bamboo; it is only the protector of the soil growing the crops such as abaca, beans, cabbage, cassava, corn, lettuce, onion, peanut, pechay, potato, rice, strawberry, sweet potato, tomato etcetera – also fruit trees.
(PH flag-vegetables image[3] from Dreamstime.com)

Reinventing agroforestry: Food crops growing with bamboo protection! If the Filipinos show the world what the bamboo can do for agriculture, the world will follow our footsteps. Then the whole world can celebrate September each year as “Abundant World Bamboo-Crops Day.”@517

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[1]https://worldbamboo.net/world-bamboo-day

[2]https://www.penguinrandomhouseaudio.com/book/311799/bend-not-break/#:~:text=%E2%80%9CBamboo%20is%20flexible%2C%20bending%20with,attitude%20to%20your%20life%20circumstances.

[3]https://www.dreamstime.com/photos-images/vegetables-philippines.html

Rappler Teaches History As Extensionists Teach Farmers: “Don’t Think, Just Absorb!’”

A good media does not teach Hate – s/he teaches Understanding! A good extensionist propagates Thinking, not simply Memorizing or Remembering.

Rappler, with your Facebook sharing on Tuesday, 21 September 2021, “Here are eight books on martial law to furnish your knowledge on one of the darkest periods in Philippine history,” plus your online entry, “#NeverForget: Revisit The Dark Era Of Martial Law Through These Books” – thereby you are a Dictator, not a Teacher!

Rappler, you are dictating to your readers What to Think, not How to Think! A good media teaches how and not what to think critically. It Engages, Enriches, Inspires.
(“Engage, Enrich, Inspire[1]” image from Teachingwithamountainview.com)

This is a teacher speaking, a graduate of UP Los Baños with a BS Agriculture degree major in Ag Education. In 1966, I taught at the UP College of Agriculture, now UP Los Baños and, having discovered organic farming for myself, began to change students’ minds about modern agriculture. In 1968, I taught college in Cagayan De Oro City at Xavier University College of Agriculture, there stirring the mind of Nicanor “Nicky” Perlas into embracing organic agriculture and who later “graduated” into biodynamic agriculture and won the world-famous Right Livelihood Award in 2003.

Was the student better than the teacher? Also in 2003, I became the Editor In Chief of the Philippine Journal of Crop Science (PJCS), based at UP Los Baños. The PJCS was 3 years late. It was a one-man job – I did the desktop publishing myself, everything digital, doubly fast. In 2006, singlehandedly I made the PJCS up-to-date, and in 2007 made it internationally accepted, listed in that prestigious list called “ISI” (now “Web of Science”).

Yes, I am a full-blooded Ilocano (FBI) with roots from Rosario, La Union, and President Ferdinand Edralin Marcos (FM) was an FBI, roots from Sarrat, Ilocos Norte – when the FBIs are good, they are the best! FM is the best President we have ever had. The FBIs are also thinkers; Communist Jose Maria Sison is an extreme example. At UP Los Baños, we were trying to un-convince some radicals on their path to perdition, but we failed. But not for want of trying.

Can Rappler be convinced to change its media way of negative thinking alone and neglecting positive thinking? As a writer, I prefer creative thinking to critical thinking. Like the British wit Oscar Wilde, I always look at the doughnut, not the hole!

In her practice of journalism, Rappler behaves like many extensionists of agriculture in this country – they train farmers; they tell farmers exactly what to think, instruct farmers exactly what to do – and they believe they are serving the farmers superbly! Those unmindful aggie extensionists do not encourage farmers to think otherwise, ask questions, explore other options, suggest changes in inputs or systems of production and processing of produce. They do not engage, enrich, inspire. After training? They expect the farmers to go on, apply what they learned, and be successful!

Like the rabid Rappler journalists, the rabid aggie extensionists are always right!@517

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[1]https://teachingwithamountainview.com/

Wensilito F Gomez, The ACPC Pilot Whose Plane Is Loaded With Agripreneurs

Today, in Nueva Ecija, I’m thinking of Wensilito F Gomez thinking of piloting others on their way to becoming agripreneurs, farmers with the entrepreneurial spirit. His plane has the initials ANYO.

(“plane passengers” image[1] from Megapixl)

ANN tells Mr Gomez’ story, “From Dreaming Of Becoming A Pilot To Being A Successful Agripreneur Through The Agri-Negosyo Program[2]” (ACPC, ACPC.gov.ph). Mr Gomez is very happy with the P480,000 borrowed from the Agri-Negosyo (ANYO) Loan Program of the Agricultural Credit Policy Council (ACPC), an agency of the Department of Agriculture. Very happy, because an ANYO loan has zero interest; with it, his agribusiness has grown Big. Mr Gomez’ success should encourage others to cultivate their entrepreneurial spirit.

Wife Josefinasays, “Because of agribusiness, we have helped many people.” (With ANN’s Tagalog interview, I’m translating freely.) Mr Gomez says, “They are part of the business.” That’s attitude – with good attitude comes good vibes. With the ANYO loan, “With a bigger capital, we can buy more. Help more. Not only those in our barangay but other barangays.” They own the W Gomez Vegetables and Grain Trading in Kaliwanagan, San Jose City. Kaliwanagan means “illumination” – Gomez Trading has brought brightness to the marketing of farm produce in those barangays.

ANN says that before all this, Mr Gomez dreamt of becoming a pilot, but his parents, ordinary farmers, could not afford to rent an airplane at P1,000/hour for training. He was working in Manila as an aircraft maintenance technician in the Philippine Airlines and also in the warehouse of Presto Ice Cream, when “his father asked him to return home and help him in their farm.” He returned home, and then he saw the way he could help the farmers: buy their produce and bring it to Manila.

Mr Gomez says:

Farmers like me found a problem with marketing our produce at harvest time. Like now, we have a surplus of pepper, they will find it difficult to sell. Almost giving away the produce. So I thought I could help because I had some knowledge of marketing produce. I also buy palay, to help the farmers, so that the price will not fall that much. That is the business I was thinking.

He tried other business ventures, but agribusiness kept calling him. “Whatever else I did, even if I went to other businesses, agribusiness brought me back.”

So today, farmers in their area do not worry anymore about marketing their produce. “I am now the only merchant here. I do the networking to where the produce will go.”

And today, Mr Gomez is thinking of helping others set their minds in agribusiness. ANN says, “He reminds agripreneurs that they should have commitment to their business.” His advice:

What’s sweet in agribusiness, you are helping the farmers. Not only for you to make money. I teach what I have learned, that farming is a business. What’s the style? I shorten the financial gap between planting and harvesting. The farmer has money while harvesting.

Mr Gomez is helping farmers help themselves!@517

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[1]https://www.megapixl.com/airline-passengers-illustration-12979698

[2]https://acpc.gov.ph/from-dreaming-of-becoming-a-pilot-to-being-a-successful-agripreneur-through-the-agri-negosyo-program/