The Department of Agriculture in Caraga (DA-13) said a total of PHP48 million is allocated in the region for high-value crop production this year.

Marco Antonio Morido, focal person of High-Value Crops Development Program (HVCDP) in DA-13 told Philippine News Agency on Tuesday that among the priority high-value crops production the agency will support this year include rubber, coffee, cacao, abaca, coconut, palm oil, and bamboo.

“Support for coconut and palm oil production will be in partnership with the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) and bamboo production with the Department of Environment and National Resources (DENR),” Morido said.

He said the PHP48 million for the year will be allocated to proposals that will be submitted by their partners in the local government units (LGUs) on high-value crop production.

Loan program with 2 percent interest per annum will also be available for farmers who will venture into high-value crops production, Morido said, adding the program will be implemented by the national office of the DA.

“We will help our farmers facilitate their loan applications, including the preparations of documents and other requirements,” he said.

The HVCDP, he said, has also held a briefing and orientation to last year’s recipients of post-harvest facilities for high-value crops, most are equipment for coffee production for partner cooperatives in the provinces of Agusan del Norte and Agusan del Sur.

The orientation, he added, was to orient the recipients of their roles and responsibilities in the proper usage and maintenance of the facilities.

Morido also said DA Undersecretary for High-Value Crops Development Program Evelyn Laviña visited different cooperatives and farmers’ organizations in the region that are involved in high-value crop production.

The visit, he said, was to assess the implementation of HVCDP projects and determine its impact on the lives of the beneficiaries.

An increase in the production of coffee was achieved in Caraga from October to December in 2019, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed.

Caraga posted 794 metric tons (MT) coffee production in October to December last year, or a 4.7 percent- increase compared to 758 MT production in the same period in 2018.

Abaca and rubber productions also posted an increase during the last three months in 2019, the PSA data added.

Abaca production posted a 1.9 percent- increase during the period, from 1,946 MT in 2018 to 1,983 MT in 2019 while rubber production was 1.6 percent higher with an output of 4,426 MT in the last three months of 2019 from 4,354 MT in the same period in 2018

A decrease in the production of coffee in Caraga was also recorded at 5.0 percent in the same period last year, the PSA data said, from 213,458 MT in 2018 down to 202,852 MT in 2019. (PNA)