SEVEN farmers associations and one local government unit in Negros Occidental are set to receive 55,000 coffee seedlings worth about P10 million this week, according to the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA).
Marjo Balinas, OPA provincial commodity coordinator, told Sun.Star Bacolod on Monday the Department of Agriculture (DA)-Western Visayas is scheduled to deliver this year’s coffee seed allocation for the province.
Of the total number of seedlings of Robusta coffee from Davao City, 10,000 will be dispersed immediately to La Carlota Organic Coffee Association.
The Cabagna-an Integrated Social Forestry and Sag-ang Organic Coffee Farmers Association in La Castellana, and the Camindangan Farmers Association in Sipalay City will also receive 10,000 seedlingss each.
Other beneficiaries who will receive 5,000 seedlings each are Nataban Farmers Association in San Carlos City, A and G Esteban Farmers Association in Murcia, Patag and Guimbalaon Farmers Association in Silay City, Mailum Organic Village Association in Bago City, and the local government of Bacolod.
“The dispersal is expected to be fully completed by Friday,” Balinas said, adding that the project aims to improve the sustainability of local coffee products.
It is also positioned to address the shortage of supply in the province and to achieve the provincial government’s target to become coffee self-sufficient by 2020, he added.
On top of the 2016 allocation, DA has still a backlog of another 55,000 seedlings for Negros Occidental last year. It is also expected to arrive and be dispersed to different recipient-associations before the end of the year.
All in all, the province is expected to get 110, 000 coffee seedlings this year, which will cover a total of about 100 hectares of coffee plantations.
OPA records showed that Negros Occidental currently has about 2,700 hectares of coffee farms.
Balinas said that some of the seedlings to be distributed are for rehabilitation and replacement.
“Most of the existing coffee plants in the province already need rejuvenation through introduction of new varieties,” he said, adding that many are now encouraged to venture into coffee production due to the commodity’s growing market potential.
Aside from coffee, the province is also expected to receive this year some 30,000 cacao seedlings worth about P8 million.