Watercress: Cordillera’s promising ‘health crop’

LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – If you are a lowlander and prefer vegetables as dish, try watercress when you get to this part of the Cordillera.

Now dubbed as "a goldmine for needed vitamins," watercress, as its name suggests, feels very much at home in rivers, creeks, and ponds.

A single 100 gram bag of watercress contains 44 percent of the recommended daily dose of vitamin A and 100 percent of vitamin C. It is low in calories and sodium; and is fat-and cholesterol-free.

Recent studies abroad also showed that a naturally occurring compound in watercress, phenylethyl isothiocyanate (PEITC), inhibits cancer development and effectively stops potential carcinogens from becoming cancer-causing.

Scientists have also suggested that watercress is an effective treatment for tuberculosis, an appetite enhancer, a treatment for skin blotches, and in folklore, an aphrodisiac.

Watercress is an up-and-coming commercial food crop in the Cordillera, particularly in Baguio City and this capital town, which are its major markets.

Its potential were discussed by Veronica Fangasan and McKinley Baybay of the Department of Agriculture-Cordillera Administrative Region in CAR."

The research project was implemented and funded by the DA-Cordillera Highland Agriculture and Resource Management (CHARM) program from February to November 2003.

Fangasan presented the paper at the Aug. 17-18 "Regional RDE Highlights Symposium, Farmers’ Forum and Rice Festival" held at the Benguet provincial capitol here. The symposium was sponsored by the Benguet State University (BSU)-based Highland Agriculture and Resources Research and Development (HARRDEC), Benguet provincial government headed by Gov. Borromeo Melchor, and the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCARRD).

Scientifically named Nasturtium officinale and locally called "tungsoy", watercress is commercially produced year-round in the United States, England, and Australia. Production is being expanded in southern Spain to meet demand in Europe where it is used in salads and soups. – Rudy A. Fernandez