DA-BAR R&D banner program boosts farmers’ productivity

In times past, corn farmers at Barangay Pagsang-an in Abuyog, Leyte, used to harvest only 0.8-1 ton per hectare.

Now, they are reaping an average of 3.5 tons/ha, thanks to research and development (R&D) interventions provided them by the Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Agricultural Research (DA-BAR).

The transformation at Barangay Pagsang-an and in farming communities in the country has been attributed to the banner program launched half a decade ago by BAR, DA’s research arm currently headed by Director Nicomedes P. Eleazar.

Called Community-based Participatory Action Research (CPAR), the program aims to fast-track technology production and adoption and create immediate impact in the countryside.

Using the on-farm research (OFR) methodology, CPAR involves the various dimensions of total technology, family, farm, community, and enterprise/industry approaches.

Pagsang-an’s "success story" was highlighted in a report titled "Piloting a Community-based Participatory Action Research in Selected Key Corn-based Areas in Eastern Visayas."

Involved in the BAR-funded research, done with the cooperation of the Abuyog municipal government, were G. Pernito, A. Bulawan, MS Tisado, JJ Palma, D. Banoc, C. dela Cruz, M. Sacay, R. Tisado, E. Bartolini, J. Demegillo, E. Torres, and R. Ayaso III, all of the Eastern Visayas Integrated Agricultural Research Center (EVIARC), DA Regional Field Unit 8.

The project was among the winners in the 2004 National Symposium on Agriculture and Resources Research and Development (NSARRD) held last Nov. 10 at the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCARRD) in Los Baños, Laguna.

In the project, CPAR dimensions and evolving framework anchored on the OFR methodology were used to implement the prioritized project components: corn production technology, corn-based vegetable production, corn and poultry integration, and farm mechanization demonstrations.

Corn production technologies were promoted through adoption of hybrid (Cargilll 818) and pen-pollinated varieties (USM Var 1 and Vm2), minimum tillage, detasseling, and use of biological control agents.

A season-long (three-month) farmers’ class on corn cultural management practices was conducted, focusing on the performance of 11 corn varieties and integrated nutrient management.

"Corn yields under fine-tined technology interventions increased to 3.5 t/ha from 0.8-1 t/ha under traditional production capacity. Return of investment (ROI) of 133.69 was obtained under the improved scheme," the researchers reported.

The environment-friendly option adopted in the corn-based vegetable production system was the use of plastic mulching and bio-control agents.

Infusion of Tiple Production Red (TPR) in upgrading the farmers’ native chicken gave remarkable advantage in terms of body weight, palatability, and egg production. TPR is a native chicken from Ohio (USA) with large body size, 84 percent hatchability performance, is a good sitter, and has high mothering ability similar to the native chicken.

Farm mechanization (postharvest equipment and farm machinery) significantly reduced labor cost, particularly those on shelling and cultivation.

"The project components, as integrated farming system approaches to optimize corn production, significantly generated additional income for the corn growers," the researchers concluded. – Rudy A. Fernandez