By agrimag
How Horticulture became a sustainable industry catering the public employment and livelihood development.
The dream of Sen . Cynthia Vilar, chairman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Food, is for the ornamental sector to develop into an honest-to-goodness industry that will provide employment and livelihood to many Filipinos.
This was the essence of her message when she inducted the officers of the Philippine Horticultural Society, which will stage the Horticulture Extravaganza from January 22 to February 2 next year at the Quezon Memorial Circle in Quezon City.
The event will be a big one and will feature a two-day horticulture industry congress, a corporate trade show, a landscaping competition, plant competitions, and a commercial section where the growers of ornamental and flowering plants will sell their products to the public.
By the way, three big names in business and public service serve as co-chairs of Horticulture Extravaganza. They are Sen. Villar herself, businessman Joselito ‘Butch’ Campos of Del Monte and other businesses, and Dr. Elenita Binay, wife of the vice president and a plant aficionado.
The officers and members of Philippine Horticultural Society have already begun threshing out the plans for the big show, which is being supported by the local government of Quezon City that will be celebrating its
anniversary, the Department of Agriculture, and other institutions.
In her speech during the induction of the officers of PHSI at her residence in Las Piñas City, Sen. Villar said that the horticulture industry can provide many jobs to men and women who can be small-scale entrepreneurs producing plants and flowers for the local as well as foreign markets. Of course, big time growers can also contribute much
to the sustainability of the industry.
She promised that as a member of the Senate, she is ready to initiate pertinent legislations that will uplift the status of the horticulture industry in the country.
This story appeared in Agriculture Monthly’s June 2014 issue.
What is your reaction?
