Land conversion threatens Trinidad strawberry trade

LA TRINIDAD, Benguet -- Production of quality strawberries in this capital town is threatened by land conversion projects amid efforts to save the lucrative industry, municipal officials said
    Municipal agriculturist Nida Organo said if not for the vast tract of land owned by the State-run Benguet State University (BSU) for institutional use, the strawberry production in the municipality would have been affected because of the rapid conversion of agricultural lands to commercial areas.
    Aside from this, she said the Covid-19 pandemic had significant impact on the production of strawberries making many farmers lose their source of livelihood.
    The pre-pandemic production of 11.44 metric tons of strawberries in 2020 dropped to more than seven MT in 2021 before bouncing back to 11.94 MT last year.
    Organo said the proposed elevated strawberry production area is highly recommended for farmers' benefit because of the experienced better production and lesser exposure to pests and diseases, especially since the said farm is prone to flooding during the rainy season.
    Last year, the municipal government earmarked some P1.27 million from the annual budget of the municipal agriculture office to help in the sustainable development and improvement of strawberry production in the municipality, where around P500,000 had been allocated for the importation of virus-free strawberry runners to replace the existing ones.
    Government records bared there are more than 52 hectares of land in different parts of the municipality being cultivated for strawberry production, where some 37 hectares are said to be within the property of the BSU while some 15 hectares are situated in elevated villages in the locality.

At present, the local government, in close coordination with strawberry farmers, is experimenting with production of the Snow White strawberry variety to serve as an alternative while awaiting the new batch of virus-free strawberry runners.

She said there was an increasing number of strawberry farmers who producing the white strawberry variety, which is similar in taste with the red variety.

However, the buying price of the white strawberry variety is P1,000 per kilo, which is more expensive than the red variety, which is around P300 to 400 per kilo during peak production season.

Residents and visitors may pick strawberries in assigned plantations.