HARBOR LIGHTS HOTEL, GUSA, CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY – Newly certified Learning Sites for Agriculture (LSAs) were presented during the LSA/SPA/ESP Assessment and Planning, held at Harbor Lights Hotel, Cagayan de Oro City. Four new Learning Sites for Agriculture (LSAs) and three School for Practical Agriculture SPAs) were introduced during the event. Some of the newly certified LSAs and SPAs proudly presented their individual farms during the sharing of the farms best practices. Among the newly certified Learning Sites presented are:

DIWAT NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL - It is a school-based Learning Site for Agriculture certified by ATI. Located at a far flung Municipality of Bonifacio in the province of Misamis Occidental, the school serves a learning site not only for the school children but for the whole community. It maintains a vegetable garden or the Gulayan sa Paaralan Project and a free range chicken production project. The school children extend their project at home since they also do the gardening after school. The school Principal, Mr. Ralph Castillon plans to have a chicken production dispersal for the school children and for the community. He said they are extending the project to all people in the community who are interested in agriculture. This, he said, form part of delivering quality education to the students, as well as becoming responsive to the needs of the public.

MR DEGA FARM – An acronym of the whole family of six, the Macahilo Family, MR DEGA Farm which is located at Manga,Tanggub City is an advocate of proper waste disposal in its farm. They are using milk, milo or other plastics wrappers as seedling bags rather than buying plastic seedling bags. With minimum source of water, they only catch rain to sustain their plants. The farm was used to be a dumping site of Tanggub City. But with passion and love for agriculture by the people cultivating the area, they now produce vegetables, free range chicken, and other crops. As Mrs Reggie Macahilo, owner of the farm said, “we want to produce our on food with no chemicals, and it is with our love and passion in farming that we are able and really want to share or farming practices to others. We teach and help other farmers without pay. And with being certified by ATI as a Learning Site, we are now a TESDA farm school, with corresponding funds and payment”.

These new LSAs and SPAs are additional sites where interest farmers, agriprenuers, organic farmers and students may visit to further their knowledge in agriculture. It is also a venue for them to learn actual farm practices as trainees and students or plain advocates.