TABUK CITY, Kalinga – Agriculture authorities in the province of Kalinga move for the application of massive rejuvenation on the province’s coffee as part of the measures to improve production. Teresa Desay of the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPAG) reported the process involves the pruning of old coffee trees so that new branches would grow for more fruits.
The step entails shorter period for recovery before the move for total replanting with new coffee trees is opted, Desay explained.
Coffee farmers in Kalinga experience dwindling production due to decade- old coffee trees, which agriculture authorities, here consider as just a normal condition.
Records from the OPAG disclosed there are 8,133 hectares of land devoted to coffee in various areas in the province with an annual average yield of .29MT/hectare, way below the 1.09MT potential production level.
Coffee is the province’s endorsed crop under the One Town One Product (OTOP) promotion by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). It is the raw material for the province’s booming premium brewed coffee industry and other products.
Considered as Kalinga’s third major cash crop next to rice and corn, the Department of Agriculture is pouring-in significant assistance to help farmers improve rate of production.
Source: Philippine Information Agency
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