Villar’s Organic Agriculture Bill Passes in Senate

Senate Bill No. 1318 has passed on third and final reading at the Senate. The measure by Senate Committee on Agriculture and Food chairperson Senator Cynthia Villar amends Republic Act No. 10068 or The Organic Agriculture Act of 2010. 

It aims to give farmers access to a more affordable and accessible system of certifying organic products called the Participatory Guarantee System or PGS.

“We have huge potential in organic agriculture but our local organic farmers are disadvantaged because they cannot have their produce or products labelled as organic due to the prohibitive cost of certification. PGS is the solution to that, it will make them more competitive,” said Villar.

The senator said third-party certification is very expensive, ranging from PhP42,000 to PhP150,000 per crop. With PGS, certification will only cost between PhP600 to PhP2,000.

PGS is also widely adhered to and accepted by international organic movements such as the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movement (IFOAM). It is also recognized by the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) as a pro-farmer alternative to third party certification.

The new organic law is expected to benefit at least 165,958 organic farmers. 

The law also increases private sector and indigenous people’s participation in the National Organic Agricultural Board (NOAB). 

Villar hopes the new law will help organic agriculture become more popular in the Philippines. She noted that organic farming is more environment-friendly as it uses organic fertilizers and pesticides that do not damage crops like industrial products do. 

 

“Organic farming is good in keeping the soil healthy. We must remember that 95 percent of our food comes from the soil. And soil degradation in the country has reached an alarming 38 percent already. The simplest way of reversing that is to put the nutrients back to the soil through composting and the use of organic fertilizer,” added the senator.