The Bicol Consortium for Agriculture Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development (BCAARRD) conducted its two-day Bicol Agri FIESTA on March 7-8, 2019.
FIESTA or the Farms and Industry Encounters through the Science and Technology Agenda is a technology promotion and transfer and commercialization platform for generated technologies emanating from researches funded by the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-PCAARRD).
Held at the Albay Provincial Agriculture Office, Farmers Bounty Village, Cabangan, Camalig Albay, the Bicol Agri FIESTA features coconut, queen pineapple, and sweet potato.
The event adopted the theme Science and Technology for the People, with the slogan Kaalaman, Kakaiba, Kwenta at Kayang Kaya.
The activities lined up include a plenary session on technologies and support system to agripreneur during the first day and an agri-entrep day and technology pitching on the second day.
Among the topics lined up during the plenary session on technologies and support system to agripreneurs are the technologies and good practices in sweet potato production, which will be discussed by Engr. Percival N. de Villa of DA-APAO; and the Technologies on coconut by Ms. Erlene C. Manohar, OIC Deputy Administrator, Research Development Branch of the Philippine Coconut Authority.
The support provided for agripreneurs by the Department of Agriculture, Department of Science and Technology, and the Department of Trade and Industry are also to be discussed during the plenary session. These will be discussed by Dr. Adelina A. Losa, Chief AMAD, DA RFO V; Dir. Tomas B. Briñas, Director DOST V; and Ms. Leah A. Pagao, Officer-in-Charge of DTI V.
The second day of the event gave way to the Agri-Entrep Day, which will showcase success stories of entrepreneurs who are engaged in sweet potato seedling production, coco-based organic farming system, coconut processing, and queen pineapple production.
Providing the real encounter between the farms and the industry are Dr. Engr. John Fitzken Da Vinci M. Niro of Bicol University of Agriculture and Forestry (BUCAF); Dr. Michelle S. Carbonell of Camarines Norte State College (CNSC); Prof. Ginalyn A. Rustria of the Bicol University of Industrial Technology (BUCIT); and Dr. Janessa A. Reyes, also of BUCIT, each of whom will join the technology pitching.