Facility to boost mungbean industry

A NEW packaging facility is expected to boost the mungbean (munggo) industry in Region 2 (Cagayan Valley).

Worth P3 million, the Mungbean Packaging House in Barangay Saranay in Cabatuan, Isabela was funded under the 2024 General Appropriations Act, underscoring the government's commitment to enhancing agricultural productivity, and sustainability.

It was on Mar. 4, 2024, that the facility's inauguration and blessing was led by the Department of Agriculture-Regional Field Office 2 (DA-RFO2) in partnership with farmer cooperatives and associations (FCAs), the local government of Isabela, and other stakeholders.

Paul Buenavista of the DA-RFO2 said the event included the distribution of agricultural inputs under the High-Value Crop Development (HVCD) program with major project beneficiaries, particularly the Flow of Pariir Agriculture Coop.

He said the Mungbean Packaging House in Cabatuan is more than just a new facility because it represents progress and hope for mungbean farmers in Region 2.

"With this program, local farmers will have more options to increase their output, add value to their harvests, and reach new markets," Buenavista said.

He said a total of 180 farmers will benefit from the mungbean packaging facility with the cooperative playing a significant role in sustaining the project, ensuring continued support for farmers in the region.

Buenavista said that the DA-RFO2 also distributed essential farming inputs to key FCAs as part of the intervention to further uplift the mungbean industry.

"These interventions align with DA's goal of strengthening high-value crop production and ensuring food security across the Cagayan Valley region," Buenavista said.

The Flow of Pariir Agriculture Cooperative also received 3,200 kilograms (kg) of mungbean seeds and 320 liters of carrageenan plant growth promoter (PGP) worth P736,000 while the Tumauini Federation of National and Communal Irrigators Association received 2,000 kgs of mungbean seeds and 200 liters of carrageenan PGP worth P460,000.

Another FCA, the Farmers of Luna Agriculture Cooperative, also received 1,500 kg of mungbean seeds and 150 liters of carrageenan PGP worth P345,000.

In his message during the event, engineer Rolando Pedro representing DA-RFO2 Executive Director Rose Mary Aquino emphasized the importance of agriculture as a viable business.

"Agriculture is a good business. Let us take care of it, let's embrace it for our children and future generations. Let us show that agriculture is also profitable so that others can see that it is a good livelihood. The progress of agriculture is the progress of all Filipino families," Pedro said.

Carol Albay, DA-RFO2 HVCDP and National Urban and Peri-Urban Agriculture Program focal person, presented the rationale behind the initiative and emphasized the importance of collaboration, saying that "we must work hand in hand [and] if we do not work together, we would not reach our export goal."

Addressing a common misconception about export, Albay explained that it does not only mean that the product is exported outside the country.

"When your product is moved from Isabela or the Cagayan Valley region to other regions, you have already exported," she said.

Albay also shared the DA's vision for the Flow of Pariir Cooperative in the remaining three years of the current administration under DA Undersecretary Cheryl Marie Natividad-Caballero.

"One of our aspirations is to be recognized at the national level as one of the main bean producers. Our Secretary and Deputy Secretary for the HVCDP have pledged a fund worth P6 million for the purchase of a seed sorter. In addition, we are also committed to the construction of a solar modular cold storage, a dream then that we are now gradually realizing," she said.

Marvin Luis, supervising agriculturist and officer-in-charge field operations division chief, and lawyer Pamela Kate Vallangca, accounting section chief, also extended their congratulations and expressed pride in the collective effort that made the project possible.