(photo courtesy of the Bureau of Animal Industry website)
Los Baños, Laguna – A three-day conference held here yielded the 2019 to 2023, 5-year development strategic plan for the livestock and poultry subsectors of the region.
Participants of the strategic planning were made up of provincial, city, and municipal veterinarians, agriculturists, and planning and report officers; agricultural and fishery council members; private companies; agricultural program coordinating officers; and research, regulatory, planning, and operations divisions for the livestock and corn programs of the agriculture department.
“We should always collaborate and work together with a positive mindset to come up with best ideas.” said Engr. Elmer T. Ferry, Assistant Regional Director for Research, Regulations, and Integrated Laboratory Division (ILD) of the Department of Agriculture (DA) Calabarzon Regional Office.
Ferry noted the relevance of the DA intervention programs and services, the value chain, and the use of both agricultural and biosystems engineering to deal with current issues related to vital factors such as food, energy, and water.
Meanwhile, Vilma M. Dimaculangan,DA Calabarzon Regional Livestock Program Coordinator and head of the Integrated Laboratory Division said the participation of industry players is important for the government “to fully understand our current situation.”
Thus, she appealed to industry participants to realize the present challenges besetting the industry since “we will be able to strategize and plan actions particularly for possible calamities and incidents of disease outbreaks.”
She also encouraged the region’s agriculture sector to focus their direction in attaining a sustainable as well as universally competitive livestock and poultry industry.
Dimaculangan also emphasized that Calabarzon, being the 2nd highest producer of broiler chicken and swine in the country needs to accelerate production while at the same time protecting the industry from being compromised by diseases. (Jojo Mangahis)