ZAMBOANGA CITY—The bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) is endorsing a multiawarded farming technology developed by a BFAR official designed to double the farmers' production of seaweed in Zamboanga Peninsula
The new technology is dubbed as the "modified triangular method of seaweed farming," developed by BFAR senior agriculturist Said Kalbi to withstand strong winds, big waves and other negative conditions.
"This method is definitely a new way to rationalize seaweed production, and it is the most efficient aquaculture system in terms of net profit compared with the other methods," Kalbi said in an interview.
He said a seaweed farmer can realize a net income of P120,000 per hectare per cropping with a return of investment (ROI) of 38.3 percent using the modified triangular method. Each cropping period is 45 days.
The traditional practice of the seaweed farming, which is the mono-line method, could only realize on-half of the net profit and ROI that a farmer could get by applying the triangular method.
"Modified triangular method of seaweed farming is a sound farming technology innovated from traditional practice and designed for deeperwaters flexible enough to be planted in non-traditional areas without worrying whenever bad weather occurs," Kalbi said.
Kalbi said the recent typhoons "inday" and "Juan" that battered the coastal barangays of this city brought destruction to seaweed farms but his one-fouth hectare technology-demo farm was not destroyed. He is optimistic that if all the farmers in Zamboanga Peninsula use his method, seaweed production of the region will be doubled thereby increasing also the income of the seaweed farmers.
Latest data from the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics (BAS) showed that the seaweed production of the farmers in Zamboanga peninsula is 60,066.04 metric tons during the first quarter of this year.
Compared to the same period of last year, it has registered an increase pf 4.54 percent from a total seaweed production of 57,457.03 metric tons.
Using a nylon rope, coconut lumber, steel or plastic pipe, a farmer can setup a modified triangular seaweed farming developed by Kalbi.
Kalbi's method of seaweed farming has won in January this year the second prize in the National Aquatic Technology Competition and emerged as the regional winner of the Department of Agriculture's Gawad Saka in May, also this year.
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