Villar's 11 bills on marine hatcheries are now laws

Eleven local bills for the establishment of multi-species marine hatcheries in various locations nationwide sponsored by Senator Cynthia Villar during the 18th Congress were passed into law.

Villar, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Food, has pushed for these measures to be enacted into law due to the high agriculture poverty incidence in the fisheries sector.

"The productivity of our marine fisheries resources has been declining because of environmental degradation and ineffective natural resources management," stressed Villar.

The significant reduction in the country's fish catch, Villar said, has been compromised food sufficiency and income of our people.

Furthermore, the country's fisheries sector provides an inexpensive source of animal protein for the population, livelihood for over one million Filipinos, and generates foreign exchange.

"With the growing population of the Philippines, fishing is one of the major industries seen as a positive contributor to the developing economy," related Villar.

"Thus the need for hatcheries be established in our country which provide the seed for aquaculture and some commercial fisheries," she added.

"A hatchery is where fish and shellfish are spawned, hatched and cared for. They remain at the hatchery until they are large enough to be transferred to a fish or shellfish farm or released into the wild as part of a stock enhancement program," explained the senator.

The fishing industry sectors- commercial, aquaculture and shellfish farms require a steady, predictable source of juveniles from hatcheries in order to stay in operation and provide a consistent product.

The mangrove crab or Alimango farming industry delves in the trade of a high-value resource that accounts for a Php 5.2 billion industry, and huge demand and high value in the international market. They too need a steady source of crackers.

In 2019, BFAR said 860.75 million fries were produced by registered bangus hatcheries in the country while 19.5 million were caught in the wild. This only accounts for 24% of the total annual fry requirement.

To compensate, bangus fish farmers are forced to import fry to sustain annual production.

"The BFAR also said tilapia fry and fingerling production was 208.35 million in 2020 while the annual demand is 2.1 billion tilapia fingerlings," further stated the senator.

Villar's 11 bills sa marine hatcheries, batas na

BATAS na ang labing isang (11) local bills na inisponsor ni Senator Cynthia Villar sa nakalipas na 18th Congress para sa pagtatayo ng multi-species marine hatcheries sa iba't-ibang lugar sa bansa.

Isinulong ni Villar, chairperson ng Senate Committee on Agriculture and Food, ang bills upang maging batas dahil sa mataas na antas ng kahirapan sa sektor ng pangingisda.

"The productivity of our marine fisheries resources has been declining because of environmental degradation and ineffective natural resources management," giit ni Villar.

Ayon pa sa senador, nakokompromiso ang ating pagkakaroon ng sapat na pagkain at pinagkakakitaan ng mga nasa sektor ng pangingisda sanhi ng pagbaba ng kanlang nahuhuli.

Bukod dito, ang sektor ng pangingisda ang murang pinagkukunan ng 'animal protein' para sa populasyon, pangkabuhayan sa mahigit isang milyong Pilipino at foreign exchange.

"With the growing population of the Philippines, fishing is one of the major industries seen as a positive contributor to the developing economy," pahayag ni Villar.

"Thus the need for hatcheries be established in our country which provide the seed for aquaculture and some commercial fisheries," dagdag pa niya.

"A hatchery is where fish and shellfish are spawned, hatched and cared for. They remain at the hatchery until they are large enough to be transferred to a fish or shellfish farm or released into the wild as part of a stock enhancement program," paliwanag pa ng senador.

Kailangan ng mga sektor ng fishing industry- commercial, aquaculture at shellfish farms ang matatag na pagkukunan ng 'juveniles' mula sa hatcheries para sa kanilang patuloy na operasyon.

"The mangrove crab or Alimango farming industry delves in the trade of a high-value resource that accounts for a Php 5.2 billion industry, and huge demand and high value in the international market. They too need a steady source of crackers," sabi rin ni Villar.

Noong 2019, ipinahayag ng BFAR na may 860.75 million fries ang registered bangus hatcheries sa bansa samantalang 19.5 milyon ang nahuli. Ito ay 24% ng total annual fry requirement.

Upang mapunan ang kakulangan, napipilitan ang mga bangus fish farmer na mag-import ng fry para sa patuloy na produksyon.

"The BFAR also said tilapia fryand fingerling production was 208.35 million in 2020 while the annual demand is 2.1 billion tilapia fingerlings," sabi pa ng senador.