CALAMBA CITY, Laguna (PIA) – The Department of Agriculture’s Agriculture Training Institute seeks to boost agritourism in Calabarzon through Agri 360, a web-based virtual map of its Learning Sites for Agriculture (LSA).
Eleazar Abestado, one of the developers of Agri 360, stated that the platform will enhance access to LSAs in the region to better promote agritourism and agricultural technologies.
“This will be a graphical representation of the LSAs in the region. It includes a list of all LSAs in each province, as well as their address and contact details so our netizens can get familiar with our sites. [More importantly] We also included the awards and recognition they received,” Abestado said.
Launched on Feb. 3 during the ATI CALABARZON’s 38th anniversary, Agri 360 is an extension project offering LSAs and Private Agriculture and Fisheries Extension Service Providers (PAF-ESPs) in the region.
Developed as a tool for promoting agritourism, Agri 360 serves as a technology demonstration hub. It showcases the best practices and technology adopted by LSAs, attracting visitors, raising public awareness, and boosting farm revenues through tourism and product sales.
The program also features a 360-degree view of farms, their facilities, and the technologies used. It also provides directions via private and public transportation, improving accessibility to vital resources and support for farmers.
The ATI IV-A is compiling data on each LSA in the region, including addresses and photos for inclusion in the virtual map. However, Agri 360 will go further by offering virtual tours to showcase all the farming technologies in use.
“We are also comparing their information with what is already available online to confirm its accuracy. We conduct site visits using apps like Google Maps to verify this accuracy. Once we establish their accuracy, we use these addresses on our platform. If not, we ask the owners to update their farm’s address.”
ATI has already incorporated seven Learning Sites for Agriculture in the region, with more sites to be added in the coming months.
“A bulk of our development comes with shooting photos and videos for the virtual tours of the farms. We hope that LSA owners can assist in this aspect, because it will be a big help in website development,” Abestado explained.
“We need the data to be complete before we can integrate them into an app. We know that updating the platform, especially the virtual tours, needs to be quick because LSAs are adopting new technology rapidly,” he added.
Abestado said an application may be developed once necessary data for the Agri 360 website is completed. (PB/PIA 4A)
