A SINGAPORE-based university is currently conducting a research on the organic agriculture programs of Negros Occidental, which will form part of a study covering Southeast Asia.
Ana Abasolo, research assistant of Yale-National University of Singapore (NUS) College, Friday said the study focuses on how the province implements the organic agriculture initiatives, how the knowledge on the system of farming evolves, and how it reaches the farmers and other organic practitioners.
Abasolo, who is conducting the research from September 16 to 20, is scheduled to conduct interviews with Provincial Agriculturist Igmedio Tabianan Jr., and a representative of the Negros Island Certification Services (Nicert).
She will also have visits in some of the organic agriculture-tourism sites in Negros Occidental like the Peñalosa Farm in Victorias City, May’s Organic Garden in Bacolod City, and Rapha Valley in Salvador Benedicto.
“Based on our mapping, we have prioritized Negros Occidental as one of our research sites, along with Benguet, Cebu, Bohol, and Bicol, because of its flourishing organic agriculture industry,” Abasolo said.
The endeavor is more of a social research that seeks to showcase how organic agriculture is being implemented by local government units and adapted by famers here, she added.
The university targets to complete the data gathering within the year, and complete the research by middle of next year.
The research, which will look at both production and technical aspect of organic farming, will be used as reference for future related studies and researches.
Negros Occidental will benefit from the research through the school’s suggestions and recommendations, Abasolo said.
For the province’s part, senior agriculturist Dina Genzola said that having been chosen as one of the key-research areas is a big boost to the province’s organic industry.
“The provincial government through the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist continues to implement various development efforts to sustain the programs it has started,” Genzola added.