SAN FERNANDO CITY, La Union (PIA) – The Aringay Veggies Agriculture Garden in Aringay, La Union bagged the regional top prize in the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)-Field Office 1’s Search for Model Bio-Intensive Garden Gearing to Enhance and Sustain Transformation (BIGGEST) 2023.
The awarding ceremony for the search was held at the J&V Hotel and Resort in this city on November 14.
The agricultural garden bested other groups coming from the four provinces of Region 1, with the Garden of Sacrifice of Asingan, Pangasinan placing second, the Paraiso ni 4Ps ti Barcelona from Solsona, Ilocos Norte placing third, and the Organikong Gulayan ng Bimmanga from Tagudin, Ilocos Sur placing fourth.
DSWD Field Office 1 beneficiaries tending the Aringay Veggies Agriculture Garden bag the top prize of the Search for Model Bio-Intensive Garden Gearing to Enhance and Sustain Transformation (BIGGEST) 2023 held in San Fernando City, La Union.
With the win, the Aringay Veggies Agriculture Garden qualified as a national finalist for the Government Best Practices Recognition led by the Development Academy of the Philippines (DAP), which recognizes organizations that showcase, promote, and share knowledge on their innovative and outstanding practices.
Parent leader Emily Tucay, who leads a group of beneficiaries tending and maintaining the garden, said that even without the recognition they received, they will still continue developing their garden to be able to provide for the health and nutrition of their children.
“Pangako niyang kahit wala nang patimpalak, ipagpapatuloy pa rin nila ang pagpapalago ng kanilang hardin. Ito ang isang paraan upang masiguro ang magandang kalusugan at wastong nutrisyon ng kanilang mga anak,” Tucay said as paraphrased by DSWD Field Office 1’s Facebook page post.llus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.
DSWD-Field Office 1 Regional Director Marie Angela S. Gopalan meanwhile said that the win promotes the development of sustainable sources of income in the region as part of capacitating DSWD’s beneficiaries to rely on their strengths and capacities to provide for their needs.
“The establishment of a community garden is a step towards the right direction which is to provide nutritious food and a sustainable source of income,” Gopalan said.
DSWD’s promotion of bio-intensive gardening is imperative in the case of La Union for gardeners to maximize their yield while also ensuring that the negative impact on the environment is minimized, if not altogether eliminated. (JCR/AMB/CCMT, PIA La Union)
