This initiative seeks to revitalize the dwindling garlic (Allium sativum L.) industry and other agri-food condiments in the Philippines and be able to increase the total volume of production in the coming years.
In 2017, the Philippines ranked 46th (7,751 mt) from 35th in 2005 in terms of volume of production among the 101 garlic growing nations worldwide (FAOSTAT, 2018). The decrease in the volume of production can be attributed to the degrading soil fertility condition of the agricultural areas in Ilocos Region, the primary producers of garlic (Bucao et al., 2017), and the decreasing area of production as farmers shifted to other high-value crops such as corn and tobacco due to its low market price (BAS, 2012). Also, in 2017, PSA reported a 40.48% decrease in production areas from 4,448 ha in 2006 to 2,647.2 ha in 2016. This is aggravated by unpredictable and unfavorable climatic conditions and low-quality planting materials. Hence, the high dependence of the country on imported garlic.
