ZAMBOANGA DEL NORTE – Thirty (30) farmers from Siayan in Zamboanga del Norte expect to harvest 13,500 bunches of banana, from the plantlets they received from the Special Area for Agricultural Development (SAAD) Program, this November to December 2018, given the 10 to 11 months’ harvest period of the crop.

Siayan, having 70.05% poverty rate according to the 2012 data of Philippines Statistics Authority (PSA), is the poorest among the 25 municipalities and two cities of Zamboanga del Norte.

Three farmers’ association – Macasing Consumers Cooperative, Seriac Consumers Cooperative, and Litolet Cosumers Cooperative – received the 15,000 banana plantlets on January 23 to 25, 2018.

Click here Zamboanga del Norte farmer-beneficiaries receive banana plantlets from SAAD

The plantlets are part of the FY 2017 Banana Production Project of SAAD Zamboanga del Norte worth P1.025M. Five hundred (500) plantlets were given per beneficiary.

The beneficiaries started sowing the plantlets a week after the distribution. They were intercropped with the farmers’ existing crops, such as corn and coconut.

According to SAAD Provincial Coordinator Ronilo Dusaban, the banana plants serve as cash-crop of the farmers since there is a potential market for the produce within Siayan.

The scheduled project monitoring of the banana plants will be this month of July 2018. ###

Writers: Jhomai Canlas, SAAD PR & Communications Officer