Agriculture has a bright future today in Tigaon, Camarines Sur, thanks to its youthful mayor who is well focused on farming. Thanks also to his able agriculturists who are implementing his programs.

Thirty-one-year-old Arnie Fuentebella assumed his first term as mayor of Tigaon in July 2007. While most of the Tigaonons derive their livelihood from farming, the local authorities in the past did not give the attention that agriculture deserved. For instance, the local government had put up in 2005 a mixing plant for Bio-N, a microbial plant growth promotant which could enable the farmers to produce rice, corn and vegetables at greatly reduced cost but mass production of the same could not be done for lack of operating capital.

When Lea Beltran, the one in charge of the mixing plant, explained to the new mayor the benefits that could be derived from the project, Mayor Fuentebella advanced his own money to buy some of the needed equipment and materials. He also detailed 10 workers to work in the Bio-N project. Since then, production has steadily increased. And Bio-N production has become a profitable operation, enabling the local government to undertake other money-making projects financed by the income from Bio-N.

From the time Mayor Fuentebella assumed office in July 2007, the Department of Agriculture had bought a total of R6,629,000 worth of bio-N for use in the rice and corn program of the national government. Aside from that there were also sales to individual farmers who have realized the benefits of applying Bio-N to their crops.

The profit margin from Bio-N production is quite substantial. The average cost of production per pack of 200 grams is about R25. On the other hand, the average selling price is R60 per packet. But if it is sold to farmers from Tigaon, a big discount is given.

The Bio-N mixing plant will be able to produce even more in the coming months. Through the efforts of Mayor Fuentebella, the Department of Science and Technology has approved a grant of half a million pesos for the upgrading of the facilities of the production center.

With the profit from Bio-N, the local government has embarked on the production of certified rice seeds, now on five hectares. Two hectares have been harvested while the three other hectares are with standing crops. With the proper management, certified seeds yield much higher than those uncertified. Tigaon farmers benefit from locally produced seeds because they can buy them at a lower price. Normally, certified seeds are sold at R1,200 per 40-kilo bag. In the case of the certified seeds from Tigaon, the farmers only have to pay R800 per bag.

Bio-N is really a manna from heaven for farmers. This is a powder that contains nitrogen-fixing bacteria (azospyrillium) developed by Dr. Mercedes U. Garcia of UP Los Baños. The powder is used to inoculate the seeds of rice and corn for planting, or as a dip for the roots of seedlings for transplanting. It could also be applied in other ways, not only on rice and corn but also vegetables and other crops.

By using Bio-N, farmers can reduce the amount of chemical fertilizers usually applied under the old system of fertilization. Lea Beltran cites the case of Rebecca Purisima who plants corn. She used to fertilize one hectare of corn with three bags of urea and three bags of fertilizer. She averaged 4.5 to 5 tons per hectare.

Today, she inoculates her seeds with five packets of Bio-N worth P300 and applies only one bag of urea and one bag of complete fertilizer. With this, she averages 5.5 to 6 tons per hectare. Thus, she saved a lot on chemical fertilizers (4 bags), yet her yield increased by about one ton per hectare.

Mayor Fuentebella has other projects to benefit the farmers in Tigaon. One priority is the setting up of a grain center where the rice farmers can access drying, threshing and milling facilities. It will also be a trading center for grains. He has been going around to observe the operation of other grain centers in other parts of the country. The latest place he visited for this purpose was Sarangani where a classmate of his is the governor.

Mayor Fuentebella is also bent on developing a vegetable bowl in an upland area of the town where high-value vegetables could be grown. At the same time, he is looking at providing additional livelihood for the womenfolk. He wants to popularize handicraft production with the use of indigenous materials such as tree bark now being used by a few households.