Ground Report

For the past decades, agricultural lands in the Philippines have seen its improvement benefiting not the farmers or the farm lands itself but big commercial businesses, subdivisions and R&R of the rich and famous in the higher echelon of Philippine society. The massive conversions of agricultural lands located all over the Philippines made headway through the efforts of big corporations and developers whose projects serves the best interests of the few.

Sprawling agricultural lands in the nearby provinces of Metro Manila had been converted into gulf courses instead of rice farms; big subdivisions for the rich instead of crop yielding plants; Rest and Recreations for the rich and famous instead of low cost housing for the homeless and squatters.

Other provinces did not escaped from massive conversions. Contested prime agricultural lands claimed by big landowners, politicos, poor farmers and original settlers often end up into the hands of developers orchestrated by the powers that be. That is why big subdivisions and beautiful western baroque like style recreation facilities are sprouting like mushroom around the country.

The unabated commercialization of agricultural lands in the country only shows the sad state of agriculture which cannot cope up with the dwindling food supply to feed the growing populations of the country. Not even the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) based in Laguna province could influence the Philippine government on how to redirect and implement its agricultural program in a long term basis.