Piat, Cagayan”•To provide better post-harvest handling, processing and marketing of fish and fishery products, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources has inaugurated a Community Fish Landing Center in this pilgrimage town of Cagayan province.
The project, which will enable fisherfolk to derive steady income from their catch, is a joint project of BFAR in Cagayan Valley, National Anti-Poverty Commission and the local government unit here.
Max Prudencio, BFAR Region 2 information officer, said the CFLC is a two-story building also designed as a hub for sharing knowledge and information, facilitate organization development among fisherfolk including women and for fish catch monitoring for scientific studies.
Mayor Carmelo Villacete, who led the inauguration of the project on July 29, expressed the LGU’s plan to develop the facility to be able to supply the fish requirement for Piat, including the nearby towns of Santo Niño, Tuao and parts of Kalinga province.
The new facility is located in a strategic area in Barangay Maguilling here, which according to Villacete is a good place for other economic activities like seafood eatery, resembling the “dampa” business concept popular in Manila.
Villacete said there is also a need for other bodies of water in their area to be evaluated for fish culture purposes and to increase fish supply.
Dr. Nelson B. Bien, BFAR Region 2 director, said the bureau is ready to provide technical assistance and fingerlings with its revitalized fish farms in the region for higher fingerling production.
In addition to the new fish facility, the BFAR Region 2 has also awarded fishing boats, fishing gears and post-harvest equipment such as freezers and fish stalls.
Bien said the BFAR has targeted the establishment of 25 more fish landing centers in the Cagayan Valley region.