Malasiqui farmers eye better life with the DA’s IFED project

Reaping now what they have sown three months after the lockdown of Luzon, farmer-members of the Nalsian Norte Farmlight Farmers Association in Brgy. Nalsian Norte, Malasiqui Pangasinan felt motivated with the success of the Department of Agriculture’s IFED project established in their area.

IFED or the Innovative Family Enterprise Development is DA-RFO I’s project strategized in response to the pandemic which provides modality for farmers to increase their incomes through various livelihood projects on crops and livestock.

Covering five production components of crops, poultry and livestock, namely: IFED on vegetables, goat, cattle, ducks, and chicken; the IFED project in Brgy. Nalsian Norte, Malasiqui is among the 19 IFED projects established in the province of Pangasinan with a total project cost of Php3,805,000.

Nalsian Norte Farmlight FA is a group of farmers in Brgy. Nalsian that composed of around 160 farmer-members. Led by Mr. Pedro de Guzman assisted by his Secretary, Mr. Ferdinand de Guzman, the IFED project in the area according to him paved way for the farmer-members to open up income generating opportunities amid the pandemic.

Started with a briefing orientation by the Research and Development Division of the DA through the Pangasinan Research and Experiment Center (PREC) located in Sta. Barbara, Pangasinan, farmer-recipients were informed on how the projects will be implemented in the area.

Out of the five components of the IFED project, three components such as vegetable production, goat production and chicken production were provided to the Nalsian Norte Farmlight FA.

For the vegetable production component, 30 farmer-members were provided with vegetable seedlings good for one hectare which they planted within the community. Seven kinds of pinakbet vegetables were provided such as eggplant, tomato, okra, pepper, bitter gourd, pole sitao and pechay. Aside from the vegetable seeds and seedlings, DA also provided other inputs such as fertilizers, plastic mulch and foliar fertilizers as they used the area for research.

For the IFED chicken, 47 farmers received 18 pullets and 2 cockerels each from the DA. Along with these stocks are drugs and biologics for the animals while housing for the animals were provided as counterpart by the recipients.

On the IFED goat, a total of 43 farmer-recipients will receive five does each from DA while seven bucks will also be distributed to seven farmer-members which shall be used to upgrade the stocks provided to the members. The seven farmer-recipients of these bucks were selected by the association.

To provide the farmer-recipients with the knowledge and technical know-how on the package of technologies on vegetables, goat and chickens, DA through the PREC-R&D conducted trainings and seminars giving emphasis on the use of organic and bio-pesticides as well as feeds formulation to animals.

What makes the project unique among other agri-development projects of DA is the roll-over scheme of the project where the recipients are to pay forward the seeds and animal stocks they received to other members of their family, relatives, friends or neighbors so that the project will be passed on from one recipient to the next until the entire community will be benefitted thru the IFED project.#