The Department of Agriculture (DA) 7 (Central Visayas) has turned over 526 bags of organic fertilizer to the provincial government of Siquijor to support the Gulayan sa Barangay (GSB) project in the island province.

The DA-7 said in a statement on Friday that Siquijor Governor Zaldy Villa personally received the vermicast fertilizer from Gregolita Bunado, DA’s agricultural program coordinating officer for the province.

Villa expressed his gratitude for the interventions provided, reminding his staff at the provincial agriculture office (PAO) to be fair in their distribution to the beneficiaries in the barangays.

Provincial agriculturist Lilibeth Caroro said they would immediately deliver the vermicast fertilizer to the municipalities and distribute them right away to the barangays that would establish their Gulayan sa Barangay.

The Gulayan sa Barangay is a project of the DA for the establishment of community and backyard gardens to ensure that households would have access to nutritious vegetables as a source of food for their families.

Bunado cited the GSB’s positive impact since it began, noting that Siquijor has 42 GSBs to date.

“We will consistently implement this program for us to attain food self-reliance and self-sufficiency,” she said.

Barangay Captain Robert Ympal of Candura, San Juan town in Siquijor thanked the DA-7 and the PAO as he received the fertilizer allocated for their barangays.

“These will help our households put up their own gulayan sa barangay,” Ympal said. (PNA)