Farmville hosts training on food processing for women

San Jose LGU's Farmville hosted a three-day training on food processing and fishery product development.

The training was organized by the Municipal Agriculture Office of San Jose de Buenavista,  under the helm of OIC-Municipal Agriculture Officer Florante Q. Moscoso, in partnership with the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources - Regional Fisheries Training Center.

Participants of the training were from barangays San Pedro and Mojon. They were women who are already into cooking and food processing and were identified through their punong barangays.

San Pedro and Mojon were chosen for there is no existing Rural Improvement Club (RIC) organized in the area.

The technology transfer training aims to increase productivity of the agri-fishery sector and encourage self-sustained growth. At the same time, aims to organize the women into an RIC.

Aside from learning different methods and principles of preservation and processing of various farm products, the participants were taught gender and development concepts and issues and were introduced to basic entrepreneurship.

Farmville is a one-hectare demo farm of the municipal government, located in Sitio Lugutan of San Pedro, using the Integrated Framing Approach and focused on organic farming. It is a venue for learning and center of technology transfer for farmers and students.

San Jose dB fisherfolks received BFAR fishing gears

Photo by Michael Tonding

Eleven small-scale fisherfolks received deep sea fishing gears from the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) through the local government unit of San Jose de Buenavista in a simple turn over ceremony at the town’s hall.

The recipients were small-scale fisherfolks living near the municipal marine protected area.  They were selected and indorsed by their Barangay Fisheries and Aquatic Resource Management Council (BFARMC).

In 2003, San Jose dB established a marine protected area with 67.22 hectares of coral reef covering the barangays of Funda-Dalipe, Madrangca, Barangay 3 and Barangay 4. Of this, 6.57 hectares is the core or the no-take zone located in Funda-Dalipe.

Deep sea fishing gears were given to selected fisherfolks to encourage fishing activities beyond the no-take zone.

The distribution of deep sea fishing gears is part of the livelihood support program of BFAR which complements the livelihood component of the Coastal Resource Management (CRM) Program of the local government of San Jose de Buenavista.     

Mayor Rony Molina (center) with Rotary Antique President Fe Osorio, Designated Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Officer Cornelius Yanga, Peace Corp Volunteer Benjamin Martin (back, wearing black shirt) with the beneficiaries. Photo by Michael Tonding