Located on a wide plateau in central Mindanao, Bukidnon is a major source of agricultural products, such as grains, fruits, vegetables, and livestock. Photo credit: Mindanao Development Authority.
The Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) is developing the vegetable region of Bukidnon province as a producer and potential exporter of high-value crops.
Located on a wide plateau in central Mindanao, Bukidnon is a major source of agricultural products, such as grains, fruits, vegetables, and livestock.
In a Facebook post, MinDA Chairman Emmanuel F. Piñol said MinDA and the Department of Agriculture Northern Mindanao Region have identified five municipalities in Bukidnon as production areas that make up the province’s vegetable region. These are Impasugong, Malaybalay, Talakag, Sumilao, and Lantapan, also known as the IMMATASULA region, which are located at the foot of the Mount Kitanglad and Mount Kalatungan mountain ranges.
Piñol said “irrigation facilities, farm roads, and other infrastructure needed to improve the quality and increase the production of vegetables” will be implemented under a program supported by a grant from the European Union.
MinDA is the implementing agency for the Mindanao Peace and Development Program (MINPAD)-RISE Mindanao. The EUR35.5 million ($42 million) grant for the program is co-financed by the European Union, the Government of Germany, and the World Bank. Among the outputs of the program is the strengthened capacities of agricultural cooperatives.
Piñol said MinDA is developing agro-industries to create agricultural value chains in Mindanao and to produce high-value products for the local and nearby foreign markets, especially member-countries of the BIMP-EAGA subregion and Singapore. The IMMATASULA project is part of this initiative.
In December 2020, MinDa organized a Mindanao Vegetable Derby in Bukidnon in partnership with the Department of Agriculture and the provincial government to demonstrate high-value farming. It was held in Talakag town where a food terminal and cold storage facility are being built.
Potential high-value vegetable crops from IMMATASULA include potato, cauliflower, broccoli, organic lettuce, cabbage, carrot, bell pepper, and Chinese cabbage, said Piñol. He cited the Sustainable Potato Program implemented by the Department of Agriculture and Universal Robina Corporation, which distributed quality planting materials to farmers in the region and yielded a record harvest of 50 metric tons from one hectare of land.