‘Pangasinan farmers reaping huge benefits of indulging intl corporate farming’

BAGUIO CITY(February 7, 2025)—More and more farmers are reaping huge benefits from corporate farming, the Office of the Provincial Agriculture (OPAG) of Pangasinan reported, with abundant harvests trickling down to better living standards now.

Since the start of the Pangasinan Corporate Farming (PCF) program in 2022, more farmers enjoy abundant harvest making their economic lives better, Provincial agriculturist Dalisay Moya said, citing that with about 66.03 hectares planted with palay, there was a yield of 4.93 metric tons per hectare during the dry season from 2022-2023. 

She said the total yield in the next dry season, 2023 – 2024, which covered 418.44 hectares, even went up to 5.10 metric tons per hectare. 

During the wet season in 2024, a total of 633.40 hectares was planted and yields are expected to be robust and potentially increase in production, the provincial agriculturist believes.

The PCF program was initiated by Pangasinan Governor Ramon V. Guico III as one of his innovative programs.

Major projects under the program outlined are rice production, corn production, high-value crop production, and fishery production. 

PCF sought to enhance food production and transform farming into a lucrative and sustainable economic enterprise through the so-called convergence approach among farmer cooperatives and associations (FCAs), local government units (LGUs), the Department of Agriculture (DQ) and its attached agencies, different national government entities, the private sector, and financial institutions.



According to the OPAG, 54 FCAs which have a total of 1,448 individual farmer-members benefited from the PCF.

The office added that the program provided input support to farmer-beneficiaries in which 5,057 bags of organic fertilizer were distributed. Also, some 9,668 bags of inorganic fertilizer were given to enhance yield and soil health.

During the dry cropping season of 2023-2024, palay harvest posted an increase of about 13.59 percent, which translates to 12 cavans per hectare increase from the previous dry season of 2022-2023.

The OPAg said that farmer cooperators can now enjoy an increased average yield per hectare of 4.49 metric tons or 90 cavans. This would translate to more income which the OPAg pegs an average increase of 101.33 percent for each farmer or an additional P35,030.00 net income per hectare.

On corn production, a total of 740 metric tons were produced under the program in 2024 up by 18.88 percent to 32.56 percent or 6.23 metric tons to 9.177 metric tons from the previous year. Production cost has been reduced by as much as P9,722.00 per hectare.

Moya said under the corporate program, farmer-members undergo class and technical training on the control and management of pests, specifically army worms. Farmers are also trained on the latest pest and disease management methods, she said.

Farmer Francis Montamarzan, a member of Doliman Farmers Association (DFA) in Infanta, Pangasinan said that when they were still into traditional farming, their harvests were limited and sometimes went to waste because of improper farming methods. He said that when new farming techniques and also the introduction of appropriate technology and them being organized, their yield went up while improving their agricultural lands.

DFA member-farmer Eudecia Melo said that because of the program where they underwent trainings and seminars accompanied by practical application on the field, their expenses on farm inputs were reduced and their income doubled.