Teresita Agcanas of Barangay Pacang, Sta. Maria, Ilocos Sur gathers an average of 45 eggs a day from the chicken layers provided by the National Tobacco Administration for the pilot implementation of its Chicken Layer Assistance Project (CLAP).
Agcanas is one of the 60 beneficiaries of the P3-million project implemented by NTA Candon in a block farm covering three barangays (Ag-agrao, Pacang, and Silag) in Sta. Maria.
The beneficiaries received on August 23, 2021 a package consisting of 48 heads ready-to-lay layer chicken with egg layer machine set, with drinkers and feeders, and assorted feeds.
In a very short time, they started collecting an average of 40 to 45 eggs per day for each set or equivalent to 83 percent laying. Medium-sized eggs are sold at an average price of P150 per tray.
“We are so glad that NTA has this kind of project for the tobacco growers, especially that we are still under the pandemic. We harvest the eggs for family consumption and sell the rest to earn additional income,” Agcanas told NTA Candon during the project monitoring on January 13.
According to Administrator/CEO Robert Victor G. Seares Jr., the CLAP intends to create an alternative livelihood option to the tobacco growers as well as to meet the growing demand for eggs in the Ilocos Region and CAR. CLAP is in line with the Livestock Development program of the Department of Agriculture and the livelihood assistance for the block farms under the NTA Tobacco Contract Growing System (TCGS) project.
“The pilot project has been a success, so we are driven to start its full implementation this year with wider coverage area in major tobacco-growing provinces,” said Administrator Seares. He added that the project has bolstered the efforts of the agency to provide livelihood options for the tobacco contract growers.
NTA is currently implementing the Beef Cattle Assistance Project and the Gulayan at Manukan sa Barangay Project as part of the agency’s intervention programs that seek to provide the farmers with additional sources of income during the pandemic.
[Reports from Edgar C. Torres/NTA Candon and Melanie Rapiz-Parel / Photo credit: Edgar C. Torres]