I. CROPS

• In Abra, planting of palay in irrigated areas was going on in the province, while other farmers who harvested their palay late were still on land preparation simultaneous with the care and management of palay seedlings. Planting of tobacco of all varieties was also observed. On the other hand, harvesting of white corn and vegetables like tomato, eggplant, okra, upo, squash and other vegetables was noted. All varieties of mangoes were observed to be on the fruiting stage.
• In Apayao, planting of palay and corn was almost complete throughout the province. The early release of irrigation water and timely onset of rains facilitated farm preparations and planting.
• In Benguet, production of most temperate vegetables increased in the municipalities of Buguias, Atok, Mankayan, Bakun, and Kibungan. There were reported frost incidents in some parts of Atok and Buguias but farmers already knew how to manage the situation, thus, no crop damages were reported.
• In Ifugao, vegetable production slightly increased in most municipalities. Green leafy vegetables like petchay, chinese cabbage and mustard were in abundance. Rains the past weeks boosted vegetable production during the reference month.
• In Kalinga, palay was observed to be in the vegetative and reproductive stages in the municipalities of Pinukpuk and Rizal while planting was still ongoing in the city of Tabuk, Pasil and Balbalan. Other municipalities of the province were still under land preparation. Corn, on the other hand, was noted to be on the reproductive stage already.
• In Mt. Province, land preparation and planting of palay was ongoing in most municipalities.

II. LIVESTOCK AND POULTRY

• In Abra, normal trading of large animals at the Livestock “Oksyon” Market (LOM) in Dolores municipality was observed.
• In Ifugao, 13 head of cattle and 6 head of carabaos were shipped from the municipalities of Aguinaldo, Mayoyao, Lamut and Alfonso Lista bound to Urdaneta City. At least 318 head of swine were shipped in the province from the provinces of Cagayan, Isabela, Quirino and Nueva Vizcaya. Also, 12,000 culled layers were shipped in the province from Bulacan, and Batangas.
• In Kalinga, raising of livestock was in normal condition. It was reported that most newly hatched chicks died due to cold weather. 

III. FISHERIES

• In Ifugao, fishpond and fish cage production slightly increased. There was no reported fish kill during the period. Water level at Magat dam was within the normal range due to rains the past weeks. Adequate supply of irrigation water was noted from the NIA Hapid Irrigation Canal in the municipality of Lamut and Mariz dam in the municipality of Alfonso Lista.
• In Mt. Province, slow growth of tilapia was observed by some fisherfolks due to cold weather.

IV. PRICES AND MARKET SITUATION

• In Abra, enough supply of agricultural commodities at the Bangued Central Market was observed during the period. Price of tomato was noted to have gone down from 35.00 per kilo to 20.00 per kilo due to abundant supply.
• In Apayao, there was a noticeable increase in prices of vegetables sold in the market as supply also decreased.
• In Benguet, there was adequate supply of agricultural commodities such as carrots, potato, wongbok, cabbage, and sweet peas at the La Trinidad Trading Post which caused the prices to go down as compared to same month last year. Carrots went down from P39.71 to P14.30, potato from P39.71 to P19.27, wongbok from P10.10 to P8.57, cabbage from P17.57 to P11.53 and sweet peas from P55.29 to P45.17.
• In Ifugao, prices of vegetables, fruits, fish, livestock and poultry were within the normal level for the period covered. There was an adequate supply of vegetables, fish and poultry in the market.
• In Kalinga, farmgate price of cabbage, habitchuelas and wongbok in the municipality of Lubuagan and cabbage and sweet peas in the city of Tabuk was noted to be lower than same month last year
• In Mt. Province, adequate supply of agricultural commodities at Bontoc Public Market was observed.

V. SIGNIFICANT AGRICULTURAL INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT/PROGRAMS/POLICIES/GOVERNEMENT INTERVENTIONS

• In Abra, establishment of an organic fertilizer plant and a nursery was observed in Lumaba, Villaviciosa.
• In Apayao, there was an ongoing construction of 2 units palay shed and 1 unit multi-purpose drying pavement (MPDP) in the municipality of Sta.Marcela. Each unit of the project cost P150,000.00 which was funded by DA CAR. The labor and lot for the construction was provided by the beneficiaries as their counterpart on the project. The palay shed and MPDP will be of great help to the farmers to improve the quality of their produce.
• In Ifugao, about 6,265 coconut seedlings were planted by 50 households in the municipality of Alfonso Lista and about 8,590 rubber tree seedlings were distributed to 47 cooperators in the municipalities of Alfonso Lista, Lagawe, Asipulo and Lamut.
• In Kalinga, on-going construction of farm to market roads connecting barangay Cagaluan of Pasil to barangay Tanglag of Lubuagan and another FMR connecting brgy. Belong, Tinglayan to Sumadel of same municipality were noted. Moreover, DA CAR thru the LGUs distributed certified seeds to palay farmers affected by typhoons Luis and Mario.
• In Mt. Province, ongoing construction and rehabilitation of farm to market roads in Sagada and Bauko was observed.

VI.  SEMINARS

• In Apayao, the Office of Agricultural Services (OAS) of Sta. Marcela conducted a training on liquid organic fertilizer production. There were 77 participants who attended the said training which represented different organizations and associations in the municipality. The training aimed to teach participants on how to produce organic fertilizer in response to the government’s program of producing organic products

VII. WEATHER / CLIMATIC CONDITION/OUTLOOK

• A generally fair to cold weather condition was experienced in the entire region during the reference month with temperature ranging from 120C to 320C as an effect of the Northeast (NE) monsoon season, locally known as “Amihan”. Occasional rainshowers also occurred mostly in the afternoon which brought beneficial effect to crops in the vegetative and reproductive stage.