The World Coffee Research (WCR) has recently announced the six (6) research grant winners on behalf of the Philippine Coffee Advancement and Farm Enterprise (PhilCAFE) project of the Agricultural Cooperative Development International/Volunteers in Overseas Cooperative Assistance (ACDI/VOCA) and its partners. Among the six winners, three came from Cavite State University – a research director, a master’s degree student, and a staff from the National Coffee Research, Development and Extension Center (NCRDEC).
The three winners and their respective proposals are: Dr. Miriam D. Baltazar’s research on “Genetic Differentiation of Coffea liberica Using SSR Marker Analysis”; Mr. Christian Joseph S. Baluyot’s proposal entitled “Challenges of Farmers Beyond the Philippine Coffee Industry Roadmap 2017-2022: Basis for Government Policies and Industry Programs”; and Ms. Marjorie Ann B. Panerio’s study entitled “Investigating the Rooting Efficiency of Hard-to-Root Liberica Coffee (Coffea liberica)”.
Dr. Baltazar is currently the Director for Research and Officer in Charge of the Office of the Vice President for Research and Extension while Mr. Baluyot is a Master’s degree candidate at the Graduate School and Open Learning College. Ms. Panerio, on the other hand, is currently a Project Development Officer at the NCRDEC and also a Master’s degree candidate at the University of the Philippines-Los Baños. The other three grant recipients are faculty researchers from the University of Southern Mindanao and Sultan Kudarat State University.
The outputs of their researches are expected to be presented at the Philippine Coffee Quality Competition or Philippine Coffee Congress in 2024.
PhilCAFE is a project funded by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) under the ACDI/VOCA. It aims to strengthen national coffee research capacity within the bounds of industry institutions, universities, and organizations to increase coffee production and productivity in the country and open more doors for Philippine-produced coffee in domestic and international markets. Meanwhile, WCR as a project partner brings international consultants and experts to PhilCAFE and administers certifications programs. They provide research grants in support of the ACDI/VOCA PhilCAFE project’s objective of enabling state universities and colleges in the Philippines to take part in coffee R&D for the enhancement of the coffee sector in the country. (CMGRafols)
