SCIENCE CITY OF MUNOZ – Ranking Israeli officials vowed to pursue technology exchange program for agriculture with the Philippine government, particularly in rural farming.
This as officials from the Israeli Embassy in Manila, consul Yifat Shriki and deputy chief of mission, Yaniv Revach, visited an eggplant demonstration field in the far-flung village of Rang-ayan here Thursday afternoon. Accompanied by officials of the Provincial agrarian reform office (PARO)-North Nueva Ecija, they trooped to an area that is alternately planted to rice.
Revach said that annually, Philippine officials name farmers and extension workers to bring in to Israel to study their technology. The Israeli government, on the other hand, sends off experts to the Philippines both to oversee the program and spread the know-how Beds of eggplants were covered with plastic mat, agriculturist Navot Haklay is an approach in Israel to cut requirement on water and pesticide thus drastically reducing production input.
Their eggplant variety named ‘tedula’ and ‘edna’, according to Haklay who have been in the country for a couple of years now, bear a kilogram fruit at an average of 20 fruits per plant per season. Its meat, he said, is equal if not superior, to local varieties in taste.
Just like the local varieties, old plants maybe trimmed to rejuvenate to produce more fruits for additional seasons.
But eggplant production is only one among plants subjected to the program. “We have a lot more programs,” Haklay said being conducted “with the Central Luzon State University (CLSU), the local government unit (of Science City of Munoz) , the PARO and other agencies,” the foreign agriculturist stressed.
Fred Paraguizon, a farmer who served as village head for 18 years, said that initial adoption of the plastic mat technology resulted to some 30 percent decrease of his production cost. Most of them, he said, came from reduced water requirement and pesticide.
“At dahil naka-plastic yung plot,” he said, “hindi masyadong tinutubuan ng damo.”
Paraguizon himself took a series of trainings to advance his knowledge in vegetable farming.
This as officials from the Israeli Embassy in Manila, consul Yifat Shriki and deputy chief of mission, Yaniv Revach, visited an eggplant demonstration field in the far-flung village of Rang-ayan here Thursday afternoon. Accompanied by officials of the Provincial agrarian reform office (PARO)-North Nueva Ecija, they trooped to an area that is alternately planted to rice.
Revach said that annually, Philippine officials name farmers and extension workers to bring in to Israel to study their technology. The Israeli government, on the other hand, sends off experts to the Philippines both to oversee the program and spread the know-how Beds of eggplants were covered with plastic mat, agriculturist Navot Haklay is an approach in Israel to cut requirement on water and pesticide thus drastically reducing production input.
Their eggplant variety named ‘tedula’ and ‘edna’, according to Haklay who have been in the country for a couple of years now, bear a kilogram fruit at an average of 20 fruits per plant per season. Its meat, he said, is equal if not superior, to local varieties in taste.
Just like the local varieties, old plants maybe trimmed to rejuvenate to produce more fruits for additional seasons.
But eggplant production is only one among plants subjected to the program. “We have a lot more programs,” Haklay said being conducted “with the Central Luzon State University (CLSU), the local government unit (of Science City of Munoz) , the PARO and other agencies,” the foreign agriculturist stressed.
Fred Paraguizon, a farmer who served as village head for 18 years, said that initial adoption of the plastic mat technology resulted to some 30 percent decrease of his production cost. Most of them, he said, came from reduced water requirement and pesticide.
“At dahil naka-plastic yung plot,” he said, “hindi masyadong tinutubuan ng damo.”
Paraguizon himself took a series of trainings to advance his knowledge in vegetable farming.
