PASAY CITY, Metro Manila— The Department of Agriculture (DA), in cooperation with the Agricultural Training Institute (ATI), will bring together top achievers in the rice industry for the 2018 Rice Achievers Awards (RAA) on May 30, 2019 in the Philippine International Convention Center.

Seven provinces, 15 municipalities/cities, eight Irrigators’ Associations (IAs), and six Small Water Irrigation Systems Associations (SWISA) are set to receive their awards including Php54 million worth of prizes during the ceremony.

DILIMAN, Quezon City—The Agricultural Training Institute (ATI) continues to strengthen its partnership with different international organizations for the advancement of the agriculture sector.

In a meeting with officials from different agriculture-related organizations in Bangladesh, ATI showcased its Climate Resilient Agriculture (CRA) program and its initiatives to promote climate-smart technologies and practices.

ATI Director Alfredo Aton, together with Engr. Renato Dela Cruz and Manuel Dimalaluan of the Partnerships and Accreditation Division, led the said meeting.

VISAYAS & MINDANAO—Following the zonal briefing on corn and cassava industry awards in Luzon, Corn Program coordinators from Visayas and Mindanao convened for the presentation of the revised guidelines of the National Quality Corn Achievers Award (NQCAA), Cassava Cluster Management Excellence Awards (CCMEA), and Cornucopia.

BUTUAN CITY—In ensuring safe food production and consumption, awareness on Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) and its certification processes is continually strengthened at farm level.

To assist the farmers, the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Agricultural Training Institute (ATI) lead the development of an operating manual for Internal Control System (ICS) on GAP. The manual will serve as guide on the standards in relation to GAP implementation and certification.

DILIMAN, Quezon City—The Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Agricultural Training Institute (ATI) continue to recognize top performers in the corn and cassava industries through the annual National Quality Corn Achievers Award (NQCAA), Cassava Cluster Management Excellence Awards (CCMEA), and Cornucopia.

As a result of the assessment of last year’s activities including the desk evaluation, field validation, and awarding ceremony, revisions in the Search’s guidelines were recently released to the regional search committee of the NQCAA and CCMEA.

DILIMAN, Quezon City—Twenty one young Filipino farmers have set foot to Japan to undergo skills training for 11 months.

This was last April 12 after these trainees completed a 75-day pre-departure orientation course (PDOC) which involved training courses on crop production, farm mechanization, swine production, and rice farming. They also took classes in Nihongo and the Japanese culture.

“Our commitment is to do our best as representatives of the country in the development of the agriculture sector,” Roberto Diesta, trainee from Region V and batch president, said.