The Cordillera Regional Project Advisory Board (RPAB) recently approved and correspondingly endorsed the Potato Tuberlets Production and Marketing enterprise in La Trinidad, Benguet for funding under the Department of Agriculture’s Philippine Rural Development Project (DA-PRDP).

While quarantine restrictions are still in place, representatives from the municipal local government and from the Regional Project Coordination Office-CAR (RPCO-CAR) visited the agencies and residences of the RPAB members to personally present the Business Plan of the enterprise subproject for their approval.

“Prior to the presentation to the RPAB, the technical and financial viability of the subproject proposal , including the completeness of the supporting documents and compliance with the project standard procedures, processes and technical specifications were reviewed by the RPCO and the Project Support Office (PSO),” said Jocelyn W. Beray, RPCO-CAR I-REAP component head.

The proposed enterprise, amounting to P12 million, intends to produce quality potato planting materials accessible to farmers within the province.

In reference to the Value Chain Analysis (VCA) of white potato, the enterprise will address constraints on limited supply of quality and certified planting materials, limited local seed producers, illegal entry of uncertified seeds, and lack of seed production support facilities.

As part of the subproject proposal, greenhouses will be established to ensure the production of clean and disease-free planting materials. A storage area for the equipment and planting materials will also be constructed to prevent contamination.

The proposed enterprise will be managed by the SRT La Trinidad Cooperative of Benguet as the Proponent Group (PG). It will be implemented under the municipal local government of La Trinidad.

The approval and implementation of the subproject will also support the Plant, Plant, Plant Program of the DA to benefit farmers and consumers.

The RPAB is composed of regional directors from the different government agencies which provide guidance, reviews and approves subprojects for funding under the PRDP. ###ELVY S. TAQUIO, CARPCO InfoACE Unit