Berly Fernandez-Tatoy – Wizard Of Community Science, Filipino

Berly Fernandez-Tatoy deserves to be declared a National Scientist, that is my opinion. Here is Ms Berly’s remarkable story, shared by Mayang Davide on Facebook, as a multi-researcher of the Department of Agriculture (DA) Region 10 (North Mindanao), dedicating her professional life to reinventing science as a servant of the farmers, by the farmers, for the farmers.

Searching for answers and solutions to the challenges that plague particularly small Filipino farmers, uncommon Ms Berly has produced outstanding results in 4 collective areas of investigative agriculture with the community as partners in research, in what is called Community-Based Participatory Action Research (CPAR):

(1)   Vegetables: 9 community-proven organic pesticides & fertilizers for 7 vegetables

(2)   Rice: 4 Next Generation rice lines identified with community

(3)   Potato: Community production of disease-free Granola potato seeds

(4)   Coconut-Based Farming: Community growing of coconut-based vegetables with goat.

Vegetables:
Via CPAR, Ms Berly has taught communities the production of organic pesticides and fertilizers. She has encouraged diversified cropping with cabbage, carrots, eggplant, pole sitao, cucumber, tomato & sweet pepper. She has promoted community gardens in partnerships with high schools in Northern Mindanao and DA’s Farmer Field Schools.

Rice:
Also via CPAR, Ms Berly has produced NextGen rice varieties, 4 identified by community as outstanding: NSIC RC 216, NSIC RC 238, NSIC RC 300, NSIC RC 308 for lowland irrigated and adverse rice ecosystems: rainfed and saline conditions. They are now PhilRice-recommended.

Potato:
In North Mindanao, the seed-borne disease bacterial wilt used to restrict potato to an average yield of 7.5 tons/ha. Under the concept of CPAR, Ms Berly studied the behavior of the market-driven potato variety Granola at the community level, and came up with the “Seed Plot Technique.” This seed system used available local resources like bamboo, used sacks combined with bio-fumigation technology (sunflower) to defeat the bacterial enemy. This system has eliminated farmer dependence on imported seed pieces. Bacterial infection is now down to zero, and average yield has increased more than 3 times, to 25 tons/ha. From the Bureau of Agricultural Research, this CPAR group of farmers has received several awards, being among the best CPAR organizations not only in Northern Mindanao but also in the country.

Ms Betty has also encouraged community production of food products: potato chips, pastries, and polvoron (short bread). All of the above has led to the productivity, profitability and sustainability of the potato industry in Northern Mindanao.

Coconut-Based Farming
Again, via CPAR, Ms Berly has promoted the growing of vegetables, as well as the raising of goats, under the coconut trees. Vegetables with coconuts have greatly multiplied farmer income, increasing from P39,000 with coconut monocropping to P236,000 with goat integration, a six-fold increase! This can be seen indirectly in very noticeable improved living conditions of the farmers.

Today, the CPAR farmers’ organization is among active producers and distributors of vegetables, providing the produce to local markets in nearby Balingasag town and also the Agora market in Cagayan de Oro City.

That is all what then-ICRISAT Director General William Dar described in 5 words: “Science with a human face.”@517


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