CITY OF ILAGAN, Isabela (PIA) - - At least eight bamboo growers in this province received bamboo planting kits from the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) - Isabela as part of promoting and expanding the bamboo industry in the province.

DTI Isabela Business Development Division Chief Zenaida Quinto said the DTI is committed to advance the bamboo industry in Region 2 especially now that DTI Regional Director Leah P. Ocampo is presently the National Industry Council Coordinator for Bamboo.

The distribution of bamboo planting kits was held on August 2, 2022 at the DTI Isabela Provincial Office in the City of Ilagan.

The beneficiaries of the bamboo planting kits were Isabela State University (ISU) - Cabagan, Local Government Units (LGU) of Cabagan, Cauayan City, Sta. Maria and Angadanan, and some other organizations.

She said the bamboo planting kits that were provided by DTI to bamboo growers include pruning shears, pruning saws, hand trowels, gloves, shade nets, and seedling bags, all of which were intended to assist the beneficiaries maintain and expand their bamboo nurseries, particularly in the communities in their respective localities.

Quinto said the DTI also planned to launch additional bamboo development initiatives such as simultaneous regional planting of bamboo this September 2022 in which LGUs, private organizations, and institutions were encouraged to join the activity.

Meanwhile, Dr. Heherson Ong, who received the bamboo planting kits for ISU Cabagan, expressed his gratitude to DTI for providing them the necessary planting kits for bamboo to be used by the university campus.

Ong said that there is an ongoing research and development initiatives of the university to identify cultivating techniques that will enable various bamboo species to flourish in Isabela and will be presented soon after the research is completed. (MDCT/MGE/PIA Isabela)