At the end of the First Organic Agriculture National Scientific Conference held July 7-11 at Benguet State University (BSU), La Trinidad, Benguet, MMSU researchers did not only pack strawberries and ube jams, they also bagged the most coveted award: best research paper.

Authored by Dr. Dionisio S. Bucao,   Romeo H. Yapit,  Maura Luisa S. Gabriel, and Diana Rose De Leon, “Effectiveness of Potential Biofertilizers, Organic and Inorganic Fertilizers on the Growth and Yield of Multiplier Onion (Allium ascalonicum L.)”  won under the Production Category which had  52 other entries from different universities in the country. There were two categories during the conference; the other one is Policy Advocacy and Extension.

According to Dr. Bucao, his team’s paper was one of the two entries under the Production Category which were shortlisted during the presentation to proceed to the the final deliberation of evaluators. The other paper was “Heirloom rice varieties of Benguet: Morphological diversity analysis, participatory evaluation and organic practices to increase yield” of BSU.

The panel of evaluators is composed of two experts from PCAARRD, and one each from the Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Agricultural Research and the National Organic Agriculture Board (NOAB).

With the theme, “Philippine Organic Agriculture Competitiveness in the ASEA”, the conference was spearheaded by the Organic Agriculture Society of the Philippines, Inc. It provided a platform for the systematic sharing of organic agriculture technologies and experiences and facilitated massive dissemination and wider application of the practices. (By Laurine S. Rieta)