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[av_heading heading=’URBAN FARMER | A competitive variety for domestic and export markets’ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=” subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”]
BY JULIO P. YAP JR.
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Friday, May 12, 2017
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WITH the involvement of some 2.5 million farmers, the mango industry is one of the backbone industries of the country’s agriculture sector.
The “carabao” mango variety is also one of our most important export products, and ranks third in terms of volume of production and area, next to banana and pineapple.
It is known in the international market as the “Manila Super” mango and considered as one of the best varieties in the world.
The “carabao” mango variety has a very high potential for export – be it in fresh or in processed form.
However, industry problems become a limitation on its performance in the international market.
For instance, the declining yield and quality are attributed to pests and diseases, poor nutrient and water management, low adoption of improved technologies, and high postharvest losses.
Other industry problems include difficulty in farm operations because of the large size of the “carabao” mango tree, non-assurance that planting materials sold in nurseries are true-to-type “carabao” mango, and high cost of production due to inefficient pesticide application.
Beyond all these, there are policy issues and concerns that impede the advancement of the mango industry.
To address the problems being encountered by the industry, the Department of Science and Technology – Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development (DOST-PCAARRD) crafted the Industry Strategic S&T Program (ISP) for mango.
The ISP for mango aims to increase yield by 158 percent (5.82 mt/ha to 15 mt/ha); reduce postharvest losses by 65 percent (from 40 percent to 14 percent); and enhance capability of mango growers on Integrated Crop Management (ICM), Postharvest Quality Management (PQM), and Good Agricultural Practices (GAP).
Through the DOST-PCAARRD’s National S&T Program for “Carabao” Mango, IEC materials on enhanced integrated pest management (IPM) for the management of mango twig borer (MTB) and cecid fly or “kurikong,” two of the most serious insect pests of mango, were developed by the Ramon Magsaysay Technological University (RMTU).
Suitability and vulnerability maps on mango production of Western Visayas are now available through a project on Geographic Information System (GIS) implemented by the University of the Philippines in the Visayas (UPV).
In the area of plant breeding, putative mango hybrids with target traits such as red blush and thick skin, and resistance to pests and diseases were identified by the Institute of Plant Breeding of the University of the Philippines Los Baños (IPB-UPLB).
Further, there is now assurance with quality planting materials since the Visayas State University (VSU) in collaboration with the University of Southern Mindanao (USM) developed a diagnostic kit for identification of true-to-type “carabao” mango.
An ongoing program titled, Enhancing Competitiveness of Philippine “Carabao” Mango through Varietal Improvement Program led by IPB-UPLB, aims to identify molecular markers associated with red blush, thick peel, and resistance to fruit fly and anthracnose through the genotype by sequencing (GBS) technology, and develop hybrids with these target traits.
It is with high hopes that with this program, we will have another competitive variety for domestic and export markets in the future. (jaypeeyap@ymail.com/PN)
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