MANILA: The Department of Agriculture (DA) and Universal Robina Corp. (URC) signed on Monday a five-year agreement to jointly establish and continue implementing the Sustainable Potato Program (SPP). In a statement, the DA said the program will help establish reliable seeds systems, capacitate potato farmers organizations and boost farm productivity and farmers' income in top potato-producing regions. It said URC joined the SPP prior to the pandemic and has distributed around 506 metric tons of high-quality potato seeds to 14 farmer organizations in three regions. These were planted in 202 hectares and yielded a maximum of 45 metric tons of potatoes per hectare, with total estimated production of 23,000 metric tons, and a gross income for the farmer organizations amounting to PHP920 million. Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said that under the new partnership, URC committed to upscale the project and expand production areas in the Cordilleras, Bukidnon and Davao provinces in partnership with the DA and the United Potato Producers of Benguet and Mountain province, and other farmers' associations in various provinces. DA regional offices and URC will identify and select farmers groups that will benefit from the program through capacity building, training in good agricultural practices, seed multiplication, pest and disease management, storage, handling and marketing. Laurel also committed to increase the funding for the production of quality planting materials targeting 2 million pieces of Generation 1 seed to be used for seed production starting in 44 hectares. After three generations, these may cover at least 12,000 hectares of commercial potato production. Under the partnership, nurseries, small machinery, storage, and processing facilities will also be provided to farmers. The Bureau of Plant Industry, meanwhile, will facilitate the processing of import permits, including pest and disease surveillance. 'Since its inception in 2019, this program exemplified the power of public-private part nerships in driving positive change,' Laurel said. 'This agreement solidifies our shared commitment to improve access to quality planting materials, enhance potato production practices and technology, boost local sufficiency, and ultimately uplift farmers enroute to a sustainable future,' he added. Source: Philippines News Agency