Benguet provincial governor Nestor Fongwan, said that with the development, visitors can stay longer in the unique and idyllic tourists spots here and the towns of Mankayan, Bakun, Buguias and Itogon without worrying about time to return to their staging points in Baguio City.

Records show that adventurers in Benguet had come to love the verdant sceneries of rolling hills and terraces of vegetables and rice; the seldom-trodden paths leading to ancient burial caves; Mount Pulag which offers a view of northern Luzon at the top being the second highest peak of the Philippines; hectares of gardens where cutflowers like roses, mums, anthuriums and crysanthemums grow in abundance and the waterfalls in practically all the province’s 13 towns.

“There are six new inns and hotels in La Trinidad; three in Mankayan, one each in Bakun, Buguias and Itogon. Our provincemates who are capable of building these facilities are helping much for the improvement of our eco-tourism,” Fonwan said.

The local investments on tourism not only complemented the steady market of agricultural products but also helped in increasing the local job opportunities of the residents.

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He said that the increase of tourists only started early this year as a result of the eco-tourism campaign done by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo over the past five years in this western part of the Cordillera mountain ranges in northern Luzon.

Records show that prior to these swimming pools, the main attraction of the town some 230 kilometers north of Manila had been the world-famous Asin hotsprings and the Brown Madonna on the Rock cave chapel.

With the president’s economic program of “One Town, One Product” (OTOP), the poultry and root crop farmers had increased production that more wholesalers not only bought the local farm products but passed on to other motorists the presence of hot swimming pools with therapeutic effects to persons with minor ailments like arthritis.

Soon after, Baguio taxi drivers have related to peers that they have increased travels in the area to bring local and foreign tourists who want to experience the unique amenities of the hot swimming pools and springs.

“Even those who cannot go the more established hot swimming pools of the Province of Laguna south of Manila have started to stay for a while in Baguio City hotels and then visit for a day the natural hotsprings and swimming pools,” a local tourist from Manila said.

Photo Credits: http://riverviewwaterpark.net/

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Strawberries so Fresh

Originally uploaded by islandcode.

WITH the promising income it gives to farmers, the town of La Trinidad is not the only one cultivating strawberries nowadays. Dr. Silverstre Kudan of the Benguet State University (BSU) College of Agriculture said strawberry growing is now expanding to other municipalities in the province.

Kudan, who was one of the speakers of the strawberry industry forum as part of the ongoing Strawberry Festival, said more Benguet farmers are now being encouraged to grow the fruit. Farmers in the towns of Tuba, Atok, Tublay, Bakun and Kibungan are now cultivating strawberry, he added.

Strawberry growing was first introduced in Benguet in the 1970s by a Japanese farmer. Tuba was the first town where strawberries were initially grown. This later expanded to La Trinidad, which is now the major cultivation area for the fruit.

The first varieties grown here were penicillin, missionary and fukuba, said Kudan. Lately, the most popular variety was the Sweet Charlie, which La Trinidad imports from Argentina.

In 2006, the La Trinidad Municipal Government also imported new varieties from California — the camarosa and festival. These varieties are now being grown by farmers on an experimental basis.

As per the Municipal Agriculturist Office (MAO), areas planted to strawberry in La Trinidad alone cover 74 hectares. Around 600 households are depending on strawberry growing as sources of livelihood.

Meanwhile, the delivery of agricultural commodities from Kapangan and the town’s famous silk would soon reach various markets with lesser travel time.

This as President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo vowed the release of P60 million from various government agencies for the improvement of Acop-Kapangan Road.

The President made the announcement on Monday in Kapangan where she inaugurated the more than P18.5 million worth of Municipal Hall.

A signage showing the poor state of the road and the experience of traveling along the rugged road moved President Arroyo to commit the amount for the completion of the road improvement project.

She traveled for more than one hour by land to Kapangan to inaugurate the town’s new three-floor municipal building that was completed last month after attending the graduation rites of the Philippine Military Academy (PMA) in Baguio.

“I passed by a (diesel) filling station which is named ‘rugged road’ and it should not (retain that name) forever, that’s why I asked a budget for the farm-to-market road from the Department of Agriculture (DA) to speed up the road project,” she told Kapangan residents.

Aside from the P20-million fund from the DA, Arroyo said another P20 million from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) and P20 million from the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) would be released for Acop-Kapangan Road.

She further asked the Benguet Provincial Government to allot a counterpart of P10 million for the implementation of the project.

“I talked with (DPWH) Secretary Manuel Bonoan over the phone and asked him to allot P20 million for this project and (DAR) Secretary Nasser Pangandaman to provide P20 million,” the President said.

Pangandaman and DA Secretary Arthur Yap were with Arroyo.

From Kapangan, Arroyo proceeded to La Trinidad and also inaugurated the vegetable processing and packaging plant at the Trading Post.

The facility, worth P9 million, is one of the priority projects of the North Luzon Agribusiness Quadrangle headed by Yap. It would serve as a facility for washing, cutting, peeling, trimming and packing of vegetables and fruits.

The DA provided P8 million for the project with a counterpart of P1 million from the La Trinidad Municipal Government.

The processing plant was constructed in coordination with Dole Asia Philippines and Benguet vegetable growers.

Source: http://www.freshplaza.com/2007/0321/2_ph_strawberries.html

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Freshly Picked Strawberry La Trinidad Benguet

Originally uploaded by MeloVillareal.

Compared to global strawberry production – the Benguet strawberries can easily match the best of the best in quality for any kind of food requirements. For strawberry ice cream, strawberry jam, strawberry sauce, strawberry wine, or just fresh with whipped cream – the delicious and tasty Benguet strawberries are a delight for every gourmet application.

Trivia:
Strawberries make up the genus Fragaria of the family Rosaceae. The wood strawberry is classified as Fragaria vesca, the meadow strawberry as Fragaria virginiana, and the beach strawberry as Fragaria chiloensis. The fourth principal species from which cultivated strawberries were developed is classified as Fragaria moschata.