UPLB Research and Extension News

A researcher of the University of the Philippines-Los Baños (UPLB) has affirmed the efficiency of drip irrigation as a water-saving technology for agriculture to address the irrigation problem particularly in areas where water is a limiting factor.

Drip irrigation, also known as trickle or micro-irrigation is a method that involves the delivery of water through a pipe distribution network under low pressure and works by applying water slowly and directly to the soil.

A statement released here over the week by the Bureau of Agricultural Research (BAR) of the Department of Agriculture (DA) said a research conducted by Dr. Victor Ella of the College of Engineering and Agro-Industrial Technology (CEAT) of the UPLB shows drip irrigation as the most efficient method of irrigating crops.

As the country celebrated this week the National Science and Technology Week with the theme “Filipinnovation: The Way Forward,” the Department of Science and Technology (DOST), headed by Secretary Mario Montejo, found the occasion fitting to honor the timely and significant innovations and contributions to science and technology of Filipino scientists and researchers.

Sharing the Gregorio Zara Medal for the Outstanding Technology Commercialization Award were Lilian Pateña of the UP Los Baños Institute of Plant Breeding for the research “Tissue Culture System for Banana,” and Eulito Bautista of the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) for “Drum Seeder: Its Development and Commercialization.”

MANILA, Philippines - One more experimental cropping season and the country’s first genetically modified (GM) or biotechnology eggplant is set for commercial production.

The penultimate phase of the scientific process of developing the new crop, done at an experimental farm of the University of the Philippines Los Baños-Institute of Plant Breeding (UPLB-IPB), was completed recently.

The UPLB-IPB plot is one of three sites in Luzon where the research project on the development of an eggplant resistant to fruit and shoot borer (FSB) is being conducted. FSB, the most destructive pest attacking eggplant in the Philippines and other Asian countries, can cause yield losses from 51 to 73 percent.

With all the hype on crispy and flavorful plump chicken breasts and chunky thighs, it’s no wonder that most people, particularly the young ones, prefer eating commercially-bred broiler over native chicken meat.

But with more and more people becoming health conscious and preferring to eat lean, healthy and organically-grown foods, the demand for native chicken is on the rise.

Optimizing the healthful benefits of eating native chicken meat and promoting this growing backyard industry, the Food Science Cluster-College of Agriculture of the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB) is developing and evaluating various products from native chicken meat to improve its eating quality.