rogel marzan2

Sunday, February 11, 2007
Farmers gear up for organic agri congress

"BE HEALTHY, Go Organic" goes the theme of the second Cordillera Organic Agriculture Congress slated this 15th and 16th of February at the Benguet State University (BSU).


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Farmers and entrepreneurs who will be participating in the congress will hear expert advises, researches, success stories as well as keynote speeches form invited guest speakers and lecturers.

Freda Gawisan, Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Baguio-Benguet caretaker, expressed optimism that the second congress will entice more
farmers to go organic as more and more consumers are becoming health conscious.

As an added activity, congress participants will have a chance to observe and interact with farmers engaged in organic farming. The organic farms to be visited are the Cosmic Farm, Garden of Life and the BSU organic farm all located in nearby La Trinidad. The fourth organic farm to be visited is the Enca Farm in Tublay, Benguet.

BSU President Rogelio Colting will be giving a situationer on organic agriculture in the Cordillera on the first day of the congress and Rogel
Marzan of Cosmic Farm will give a talk on starting and managing an organic farm.

A topic on the harmful effects of pesticide will be given by Dr. Charles Cheng of the Filipino-Chinese Hospital and Professor Evangeline Cungihan and Dr. Ma. Klondy Dagupen of BSU will present a paper on the economics of organic farming cases.

The two-day congress, Gawisan said, will also present the programs of various government offices and a plenary session on waste management and
organic agriculture.

After the guided tour to the various organic farms on the second day, parallel sessions on organic vegetable production and marketing, a demonstration on rapid composting and preparation of organic fertilizers and pesticides will be discussed by various experts.

Herbal medicine specialist Precy Acoba will also show how to prepare herbs that are nutritious and medicinal to participants.

To cap the two-day congress, Gawisan added that a Cordillera agriculture road map will be presented to the participants to encourage and challenge them to venture into organic farming. Gawisan also noted that the congress is being supported by the Department of Agriculture, Department of Tourism, Department of Trade and Industry, the Benguet Chamber of Commerce, the Province of Benguet, municipality of La Trinidad, Organic Farmers Associations, Cooperative Bank of Benguet and the only organic university in the country, the BSU. (Art Tibaldo)
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