Fernando Air Base: A showcase of scientific farming

To optimize the utilization of idle military lands and to support the government’s food security program, the top echelon of Fernando Air Base in Lipa City have launched a project to transform the historical base into an eco-tourism and agri-demo farm catering to both domestic and foreign visitors.

The project was initiated last year by the commander of the Philippine Air Force’s Air Education Training Command (AETC) Maj. Gen. Fernando I. Manalo who organized a cooperative that focused on some of the areas inside the base into a cornfield in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture.

Allocating 80 hectares – out of the 242 hectares of idle lands inside the base – for high-yielding corn, the project has been enrolled in the DA’s Ginintuang Masaganang Ani and intends to make the base a showcase of scientific planting of several vegetables inside the base.

Also, in cooperation with UP Los Baños and East West Seed Co., the base has started planting high value crops using environment-friendly technologies. Also planted inside the base are 250 mango trees that were sprayed last month to induce flowering and assure an early harvest.

In a visit last week, Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap lauded the soldiers for the work they have done so far inside the base. He said he is among those who have been campaigning for the transformation of military idle lands to become additional sources of agricultural produce. Yap assured the soldiers of a ready market for their produce.

As it stands, almost 40 percent of the 272 hectares of idle lands inside the base has been planted to various crops such as pechay, eggplant, tomatoes, pepper, water melon, mustaza, yellow corn, Sinta papaya and other crops provided by the DA.

Yap was joined by Batangas Rep. Llandro Mendoza who donated a farm tractor worth P3 million. AGAP party-list Rep. Nicanor Briones also promised to help in the effort by providing other farm support requirements, particularly an assured market for their corn produce.

The base’s demo farm has started to attract farmers around Lipa and nearby areas who regularly visit the base to observe the farming techniques and to see for themselves how good new farming technologies are.