Bad – The news suggests that our leaders in Agriculture have not seriously
and officially examined how to reimagine and make this sector sustainable.
No matter how you define “sustainability.”
Good – Reimagine. Rethink. What exactly did SEARCA Center Director Glenn Gregorio mean? Ms Leah says:
(He) emphasized the need to
rethink traditional agricultural approaches. He underscored this in light of
the complex challenges confronting the agriculture sector, including food
security, climate change, and resource depletion.
“Rethink Philippine Agriculture” – Not President Ferdinand “BBM” Marcos Jr when he was Secretary of Agriculture; not now
Secretary of Agriculture Francis Tiu
Laurel Jr – they have ignored food security, Climate Change, and
resource depletion. They have other priorities that I do not appreciate. (If
you ask me, I will tell you who my favorite Secretary of Agriculture is, as he
has Vision, Mission & Strategy for PH Agriculture.)
(Mr Gregorio) highlighted
SEARCA's strategic role in advancing agricultural innovation and sustainable
development across Southeast Asia. Citing SEARCA's work focused on Accelerating
Transformation Through Agricultural Innovation (ATTAIN), he emphasized that
agriculture is not at a crossroads but is a thriving sector with immense
potential.
Yes, PH
agriculture has “immense potential” – yet untapped. We cannot ATTAIN such
potential if we do not recognize it first!
The part of that immense
potential I am interested in right now is the potential to solve 2 major
problems: (1) Climate Change and (2) Farmer Poverty.
(Mr Gregorio) shared his initiative in
climate-proofing corn and developing super sweet waxy corn with multiple
beneficial traits, which contribute to food security by enhancing crop
resilience and promoting diversification. His contributions to micropropagation
and plant research also promoted smart and sustainable agriculture through
superior disease-free plant selections and improved plant varieties.
I have no problem
with corn. Mr Gregorio is after (a) food security – good! (b) diversification –
good! (c) crop resilience – good! But we have to do more than good. I would go
beyond improving crop varieties up to improving the climate: by eliminating
chemical fertilizers and chemical pesticides, the ones that generate greenhouse
gases (GHGs), as it is the GHGs that generate Climate Change!
“By talking about
the impact of innovations,” Mr Gregorio “reinforces SEARCA’s advocacy for using
scientific advancements to address agricultural challenges.”
That gives me the
opportunity to point out that “The biggest agricultural challenge is Climate
Change. Now, what scientific advancement do we have to successfully address
such a challenge?
What we have is not
scientific advancement but a list of scientific facts that as a whole, Regenerative
Agriculture (RA):
(1) Does
not require chemical fertilizers and pesticides and therefore does not
generate greenhouse gases that generate Climate Change;
(2) Requires
natural fertilizer;
(3) Produces
high yields;
(4) Results in healthy foods;
(5) Enables farmers to conquer poverty!
One overall solution: Regenerative Agriculture
eventually overcoming Climate Change and Farmer Poverty! Who of you doesn’t
want that?!@517
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