Wednesday, December 05, 2007 Fida to establish own tissue culture lab By Joy G. Romares-Sevilla
A TOP official of the regional office of the Fiber Industry Development Authority (Fida) revealed Tuesday that the establishment of the agency's first owned tissue culture laboratory in Davao City will start next month.
"We already procured all the materials needed and the setting up of the laboratory will start either January or February next year," Dr. Olympio Macarayan, Fida regional director told Sun.Star Davao.
The tissue culture laboratory will be put up inside Fida's Fiber Research and Seed Station in Bago Oshiro.
Macarayan said the laboratory is the first to be owned by Fida-Southern Mindanao.
"Fida doesn't have a tissue culture laboratory, what is operational in the Fiber Research and Seed Station is the Disease Diagnostic Laboratory," Macarayan said.
"The abaca tissue will have to undergo first in the disease diagnostic lab before it will be cultured. The diagnostic lab will detect whether the planting material is free from disease," Macarayan explained.
Through the laboratory, the agency can be assured of producing more disease-free planting materials for the farmers in the region.
The regional office of the Department of Agriculture (DA) funds the establishment of the tissue culture lab.
The laboratory is worth 500,000, Macarayan said. (JGRS)
