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Agriculture

Learn things about Philippine agriculture like planting crops, fruits, vegetables, and other valued crops.

Aug272022 by Arturo BrosasNo Comments
Feed Milling Business: From Sugar Slavery to Success

Feed Milling Business: From Sugar Slavery to Success

Agriculture, Food & Feed Business, Livestock, Poultry
When we hear about the feed milling business, we always think of those large structures with large silos and tanks that needs hundreds of millions, if not billions of pesos to set up. This is not the case with the man who was enslaved by sugar barons for most of his life. Oscar “Oca” Latorgo is a third-generation sugarcane worker who spends most of his teenage and adult life working in the sugarcane fields in his native town, Binalbagan, Negros Occidental, Philippines. As a former Sakada, he’d been doing back-breaking jobs all over Negros cutting and loading sugarcane on trucks. His life turned 360 degrees though when he received his 2.8 hectares of land through Comprehensive Agrarian Reform (CARP) in 2013, followed by the return of his oldest son during the pandemic in early 2020. ...
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Aug262022 by Arturo BrosasNo Comments
Farming Calamansi for Profit

Farming Calamansi for Profit

Agriculture
People who are farming Calamansi enjoy higher income than those who are planting sugarcane, corn, and even rice and in this article, I am going to explain why. The Calamansi Plant Calamansi (Citrus × microcarpa), also known as calamondin, Philippine lime, or Philippine lemon, is an economically important citrus hybrid predominantly cultivated in the Philippines. It is native to the Philippines, Borneo, Sumatra, and Sulawesi in Indonesia in Southeast Asia, as well as southern China and Taiwan in East Asia. Calamansi is ubiquitous in traditional Filipino cuisine. It is naturally very sour and is used in various condiments, beverages, dishes, marinades, and preserves. Calamansi is also used as an ingredient in Malaysian and Indonesian cuisines. Calamansi is a hybrid between kumquat (form...
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Aug242022 by Arturo BrosasNo Comments
Batuan Farming for Profit

Batuan Farming for Profit

Agriculture
Batuan farming is something the majority of Filipinos never heard about unless you are living in the Visayas, especially in Negros Occidental where it is a very important cooking ingredient. Batuan or Batwan (scientific name: Garcinia binucao), or Binucao in Tagalog, is a wild tree that grows between 10 to 25 meters. Its fruit is used as the main souring agent in Negros cuisine. It is also used in the parts of Panay, Cebu, Bohol, Siquijor, and Guimaras islands, and other parts of the Philippines with the Ilonggo (Hiligaynon) population.  Batuan has a very distinct flavor. Due to the popularity of online shopping, Batuan is now available all over the Philippines. Batuan Uses Batuan's primary use is as a souring agent, especially for tinola, paksiw, nilaga (linaga), and other Negren...
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Aug182022 by Arturo BrosasNo Comments
14 of the Most Profitable Vegetables to Grow in the Philippines

14 of the Most Profitable Vegetables to Grow in the Philippines

Agriculture
Vegetable farming is not only a decent job but also a profitable and enjoyable business. Many people spend their retirement doing backyard farming. Another important thing about farming is that you can do it anywhere. Planting vegetables for personal consumption or commercial is a good source of income but one must plant profitable vegetables to grow in order to make income. If you don’t have the land to farm, urban farming is a booming hobby and business. If you are aiming for large-scale farming, we provide a list of profitable vegetables to grow that can give you a high return on your investment. The list below is taken from the Philippine Statistics Authority data for 2007 to 2018 and it has not changed since then. The following lists are the most profitable and do not necessa...
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Aug152022 by Arturo BrosasNo Comments
Vermicomposting in the Philippines as Business

Vermicomposting in the Philippines as Business

Agriculture
Vermicomposting in the Philippines is a highly-profitable business to start with and people who are exploring to start gari-business should look into vermiculture. The Philippines being a tropical country is not only rich in biodiversity, but also has lots of agricultural resources that can turn into profitable business ventures. One of these is vermiculture - the process of turning biodegradable wastes into high-quality organic fertilizer with the use of African Night Crawler (Eudrilus eugeniae). As of this writing, 1 sack or 50 kilos of vermicompost costs P800 to P1,000 depending on which part of the country you are in, and worms cost P1,000 to P1,200 per kilo. Vermicomposting in the Philippines| The African Nightcrawler Worm  Eudrilus eugeniae, also called the "African Nightcrawler...
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Aug142022 by Arturo BrosasNo Comments
Ginger Farming in the Philippines

Ginger Farming in the Philippines

Agriculture
Ginger Farming in the Philippines is one of the most profitable agri-business ventures if the farm is properly managed and the ginger is harvested at the right time and price. As of this writing, the current market price of ginger here in Tanauan City Public Market, Batangas, is P167/kg. There were a number of times that the prices reached up to P210/kg. Ginger farmers here in Batangas are making huge amounts of money. After all, ginger is one of the most important ingredients in Filipino dishes so whether it is P100 or P200 per kilogram, people would still buy it. Ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe) is popular to its distinct sharp and hot flavor due to an oily substance called gingerol. It is known as Luya in Tagalog. It has an aerial part of about 0.8 m high, which could grow up t...
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Aug132022 by Arturo BrosasNo Comments
Aquaponics Philippines Guide: Fish and Vegetable Farming at Home

Aquaponics Philippines Guide: Fish and Vegetable Farming at Home

Agriculture, Fishery
Growing lettuce at home in aquaponics is a great alternative. Currently, the demands of modern life, as well as the consequent lack of time, often make it difficult to find fresh products in markets to place on our table. Hence, more and more people are interested in growing their own food at home. But how to do this, if we do not have land to grow our vegetables? That is why it is a viable option to combine the cultivation of vegetables in hydroponics using water from fish farming as a nutrient medium; So this system known as aquaponics does not require large spaces and can be done at home in patios, garages, roofs, and even balconies. Imagine, being able to grow your own lettuce, tomatoes, or cucumbers on your balcony! Of course, starting an aquaponic culture at home requires...
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Aug132022 by Arturo BrosasNo Comments
How the Sugar Industry Continues to Create Poverty in Negros

How the Sugar Industry Continues to Create Poverty in Negros

Agriculture, News & Opinion
The province of Negros Occidental is the 6th wealthiest province in terms of gross income in the country only behind Cebu, Batangas, Rizal, Davao de Oro, and Bukidnon. The island of Negros is known for its sugarcane production which accounts for 63% of the country's sugar output.  Bacolod, the capital city of Negros Occidental and the largest city in Western Visayas, is a highly-urbanized city, and poverty is hardly seen due to skyscrapers and luxurious subdivisions.   One might think that the people in the province are living comfortably due to the "riches of sugarcane", but behind the sugar wealth, the island is also having many of the poorest populations.  In 2015, the national poverty incidence was 16.5% of families, while it was 38.7% in Negros Oriental and 21.9% in Negros Oc...
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Aug112022 by Arturo BrosasNo Comments
Top 10 Food Crops in the Philippines

Top 10 Food Crops in the Philippines

Agriculture
The Philippines is both an agricultural and industrial country and rice is the most important  Filipino staple food. Every year, the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the National Food Authority (NFA) are closely monitoring the rice production and supply in the country in order to meet the volume of demand needed by the Filipino people. Despite the country’s high palay production, the government is still importing rice from other Asian countries like Vietnam and Thailand, in order to maintain the needed yearly rice quantity. Aside from palay, the following are the top ten crops and agricultural products in the Philippines is known for. 1. Sugarcane With an average of 23 million metric tons of sugarcane production every year, the Philippines is the ninth biggest sugar producer i...
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Aug112022 by Arturo BrosasNo Comments
Why Sugarcane is the Least Profitable Crop to Grow

Why Sugarcane is the Least Profitable Crop to Grow

Agriculture
As of this writing, the price of refined sugar in Metro Manila (retail) is P98/kg while the washed sugar is P80/kg. With this almost unaffordable price, many people would think that sugar farmers are making tons of money and perhaps, you are thinking of investing in sugarcane farming too - wait until you finish reading this article. Sugarcane is a major Philippine agricultural product and is second only to rice in the total area occupied around the country under food crops. It is harvested only once every year and the waiting time is quite long compared to other major crops like rice, corn, and vegetables. Although the country is producing millions of tons of sugarcane, still it is not self-sufficient. The cost of production is extremely high and instead, importing sugar is quite econom...
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