[ Manila Bulletin Online ] May 12, 2008
SAN JOSE, Occidental Mindoro — The Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (DABFAR) has officially included Mindoro Occidental in the roadmap of the so-called Mariculture Highway with the launching here last Friday of the 500-hectare San Jose mariculture zone.
Gil A. Adora, BFAR national assistant director for Technical Services, said that BFAR already listed Mindoro Occidental as part of the Mariculture Highway even before Gov. Josephine R. Sato requested for it.
The VIPs who graced the launching rites include Governor Sato, Director Adora, San Jose Mayor Romulo Festin, Caminawit Barangay Captain Danilo Centino who represented Deputy Speaker Amelita C. Villarosa, BFAR Region IVB Director Ruben Jardin, BFAR Region IV-B Fisherfolk Director Perla Endino, and Mimaropa regional fisherfolk representative Ronaldo N. Paglicawan.
The occasion took a special significance as the country celebrates May as Fisherfolk Month.
The launching was highlighted with a program, cutting of the ceremonial ribbon, and stocking of cages with fingerlings of milkfish (bangus), grouper (lapu-lapu), singanid (dangit), and saline tilapia.
Director Adora said that the Mariculture Highway is both a development strategy and a marketing strategy.
It is a development strategy because in indentified areas such as mariculture parks, government support is focused on the effort to achieve large-scale production of fish.
He said as a marketing strategy, the Mariculture Highway brings the fish produce to domestic and international markets.
Trading vessels pick up the produce, live or frozen, in all the mariculture parks in the country and bring them to domestic or international markets, "a scheme which practically brings the market right to the doorsteps of mariculture parks," Adora said.
Regional Director Ruben Jardin, in his opening remarks, said the San Jose mariculture zone is unique in that it is the only mariculture park in the country that is managed by an Executive Management Council (EMC) which is headed by no less than the governor.
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