DAGUPAN CITY—Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap has tagged Pangasinan as one big sleeping giant in agriculture even as it now lags far behind in the production of rice, corn and vegetables over the years.

Yap, speaking during his recent visit in the province, said in the country’s drive for food security, the province of Pangasinan can play a big role by helping produce rice, corn and vegetables needed by the whole country in view of the threat of world food crisis aggravated by the high cost of oil, fertilizers and transportation and the climate change.

Pangasinan is the biggest province in the Ilocos Region and the biggest as well in the entire country, and yet it is not producing enough rice, corn and vegetables unlike the other provinces, Yap noted.

Yap clarified that agriculture is the responsibility of the local government, with the national government merely providing the support and direction.

He noted that under the administration of Pangasinan Gov. Amado Espino Jr., more than P100 million has been set aside for agriculture.

While in Pangasinan, Yap turned over two tractors for two farmers’ cooperatives, namely. the San Gabriel II Farmers Multi-Purpose Cooperatives in Bayambang and the Pangasinan Fertilizer Dealers Multi-Purpose Cooperative based in Rosales town.

Noting that Espino is proagriculture, Yap announced that the DA is making available a flat-bed dryer for rice and corn farmers in the town of Sison and soon in the other rice- and corn-producing towns of the province.

He said Bayambang and Rosales will be beneficiaries of a 200-ton-capacity central corn dryer, each costing P50 million, from the National Agri-Business Corp., headed by Allan Javellana.

Yap said the province must cluster its towns so they will not be planting the same or one kind of vegetables in the province.

He said Metro Manila is in need of 20,000 metric tons (MT) of ampalaya, 98,000 MT of eggplants and 10 million kilos of tomatoes, including the off-season varieties, and Pangasinan could very well fill such a demand.

“In order to spur more vegetable production in Pangasinan, the DA will put up bagsakan centers in Sison, Asingan and Sual to serve farmers in clustered towns,” Yap said.

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DAGUPAN CITY—Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap has tagged Pangasinan as one big sleeping giant in agriculture even as it now lags far behind in the production of rice, corn and vegetables over the years.

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