THE Municipality of Kasibu in the province of Nueva Vizcaya has been officially recognized by the Department of Agriculture Regional Field Office 2 (DA-RFO2) as the “Citrus Capital of Luzon” during the recently concluded first Philippine Good Agricultural Practices Summit held in this town .
DA-RFO2 Executive Director Narciso Edillo led national and local officials during the recognition on Thursday, September 22, as per Administrative Order 18 dated June 24, 2022 and signed by then Agriculture secretary William Dar.
“I not only congratulate the officials of the local government of Kasibu but the citrus farmers, young and old, for bringing another pride for our region, Cagayan Valley,” Edillo said.
Mayor Romeo Tayaba thanked the Department of Agriculture (DA) for the declaration that they have long been aspiring for.
“Citrus production is the major livelihood here. With this title, we are more inspired to work harder with the DA and other concerned agencies so that the lives of our constituents will improve,” Tayaba said.
Vice Mayor Alberto Bumolo Jr. said he believes that the citrus industry in Kasibu will become stronger with the support of different national government line agencies.
“With the Department of Agriculture’s support, we accept the challenge of expanding our production areas from 600 hectares to more than a thousand,” Bumolo said.
Aside from the production of citrus, the upland town of Kasibu is also known as an emerging coffee producer in Cagayan Valley.
Edillo said the DA under the High Value Crops Development Program also officially turned over to Kasibu Coffee Growers Association (KCGA) the P5 million coffee processing facility and coffee shop located in Barangay Poblacion.
DA Bureau of Plant and Industry Director Gerard Glenn Panganiban also attended the turnover as keynote speaker during the 1st Philippine Good Agricultural Practices Summit that ended on the same day in this town.
Edillo said the project was funded under Bayanihan 2 to boost the coffee industry in the municipality.
Juliet Bumolo Morales, KCGA president, thanked the DA for the assistance given to their association.
“Rest assured that we will not fail your dreams for us to become a successful agripreneur. We had a very difficult start, but with the help of DA, the operation went well and we are now able to process our coffee and do the marketing ourselves Morales said.
The DA-RFO2 also awarded various projects to Malabing Valley Multipurpose Cooperative and other farmers’ cooperatives and associations.