Making History!

Two agricultural programs which could turn Kidapawan City into the Beef Halal Beef Production Capital of the Philippines and an innovation to help b backyard hog farmers affected by the African Swine Fever will be presented to the City Council today for their approval.
Just like the many other programs of the DA implemented when I was Secretary of Agriculture, including the National Program SAAD, I personally conceptualized and designed these programs with the help of a young veterinarian who has joined my advocacies, Dr. Roland Fajardo of Antipas town.
This will be the first time in the history of our country, that a former Secretary of Agriculture who has pursued Food Security advocacies even outside of government will appear before a City Council to present two livestock programs to address an impending meat supply shortage because of the ASF.
The Kidapawan Halal Beef Production Program and the Community Hogstel Program was first presented to the young City Mayor, Paolo Evangelista, and he liked the idea of the City leading the way in attaining meat sufficiency in the country.
The Kidapawan City Halal Beef Production starts with a 5-year Cattle Fattening and Breeding Program which involves importing steers from Australia to be fattened for 100 days and then slaughtered to boost local beef supply.
Alongside the fattening program, Cattle breeders will also be brought in so that that end of the 5-year program, local farmers in Kidapawan will have at least two heads of breeders or fatteners in their backyard.
The Community Hogstel Program, on the other hand, seeks to elevate backyard hog raising into a commercial level where instead of raising hogs in their backyards, the farmers who belong to a corporative entity will own and operate a Hog Raising Complex complete with a feed mill, a breeding and grow-out facility and abattoir.
In the Kidapawan Halal Beef Production Program, the Dept. of Agriculture National Livestock Program will be asked to provide a Halal Abattoir while in the Community Hogstel Program, the DA NLP will establish the Hog Raising Complex estimated to cost about P3-B with the City Government providing a 50-hectare area as its counterpart.
Before I presented the programs to Mayor Evangelista, I had already conferred with Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel, Jr., DA-NLP Head Undersecretary DV Savellano and the poultry and livestock Assistant Secretaries Dante Palabrica and Ben Albarece.
When the Kidapawan City Council approves these programs today, we will be making history by convincing LGUs to exercise their corporate powers to initiate agro-industrial enterprises to ensure sufficient food supply for their people.
The LGUs have an advantage over the National Government in implementing programs such as these because all that is needed is for the Mayor and the City Council agree.
For a former Mayor and Governor like me, these LGU initiated Food Sufficiency and Economic Enterprise programs are the perfect examples of the vast potentials of local governments in ensuring Food Security for their people which would also benefit the whole country.
#GovernanceIsCommonSense!
#KungGustoMaramingParaan!