Twenty-eight INSPIRE beneficiaries successfully finished their training entitled “Empowering INSPIRE Beneficiaries: Training on Good Animal Husbandry Practices” held on July 29-31, 2024.
The reason for conducting the training was based on good husbandry practices at the farm level which is an essential component of the production of quality and safe food. It encompasses all the measures adopted at the farm, from procuring and rearing healthy animals, and their welfare, to final slaughter or milking. Farm management is done in such a way as to keep animals in a healthy condition, provide adequate and contamination-free feed and, water, and optimum living conditions. Furthermore, GAHP supports sustainability through environmental stewardship and efficient resource management, ensuring the long-term viability of farming operations. It also plays a crucial role in disease prevention and control, reducing disease incidence and protecting public health. Community empowerment is another key benefit, as training imparts knowledge and skills, fostering independence and creating opportunities for networking and support. Additionally, GAHP training ensures compliance with regulatory standards and helps beneficiaries achieve certifications that enhance their market credibility.
The objective of the training was to update beneficiaries such as INSPIRE, LEED, and others on good husbandry practices for them to ensure that the farming practices of the establishment provide greater confidence in consumer’s expectations that the final products are safe and fit human consumption, while ensuring health, safety, and comfort to both the farm workers and the animals, without any degradation to the environment.
Resource persons expounded the following topics to the participants which include: Animal Welfare Act, its application requirements and procedure; The Good Animal Husbandry Practices Certification Program, its requirements and procedures and discharge permit application.
The training was backed up with a farm visit to AWA Certified Farms. Here the participants have the chance to gain knowledge and describe the basic facilities and components of an AWA certified farm.
Mr. Mark Paul C. Maquera, Caretaker of the Luna Apayao Organic Practitioners Association (LAOP) thanked the DA-Region and ATI-RTC-CAR in particular for conducting the training. He said that “through the training program, we were able to pinpoint the areas where we need improvement and gain clarity on what enhancements are necessary.”
The training was held at the Dam-muh-han Hall, ATI-RTC-CAR, BSU Compd.,. La Trinidad, Benguet.
