Villar SIPAG opens 4-day training on aquaculture

Sen. Cynthia Villar today welcomed 50 participants to the 4-day training on aquaculture at the Villar SIPAG (Social Institute for Poverty Alleviation and Governance) Farm School located at the boundary of Las Pinas and Bacoor City.

Villar SIPAG partnered with the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources- Region 4A to conduct free training for participants coming from the National Capital Region and provinces in Region 4A.

"With the dwindling catch from the wild, we are now turning to aquaculture as the main source of fish and marine species for food. We are training fisherfolk to improve present practices and to increase their productivity, and also farmers who want to venture into fish farming," Villar, director of Villar SIPAG, said.

The first day of the training will cover topics under fresh water aquaculture, such as red tilapia culture, fish health management, good aquaculture practices, record keeping, and hands-on training. Day 2 will involve training on post-harvest such as smoking, drying, fishball making, and kikiam making.

Day 3 will be a module on ornamental fish culture and breeding and Day 4 will cover aquaponics or a system that combines aquaculture and hydroponics.

"Overfishing is a major concern globally, with experts issuing warnings that if sustainable fishing is not practiced and oceans are not given time to recover, they could become 'virtual deserts' by 2050 or barely 36 years from now," Villar stressed.

The chair of the Senate Committee on Environment and Natural resources also cited studies saying 20 years ago, 70% of our fish production came from the ocean and 30% from aquaculture. At present, fish production is 50% wild catch and 50% aquaculture.

Villar noted that the Philippines, being the sixth biggest fish producer in the world, has an aquaculture production of over US$1.58 billion. The fisheries sector also provides direct and indirect employment to over one million people, or about 12 percent of the agriculture sector of the labor force.