General Guidelines for the Accreditation of Abaca Plant (Musa textilis Nee) Nurseries (AAPN)

January 4, 2016

DA DEPARTMENT CIRCULAR NO. 001-16

 

WHEREAS, pursuant to the provisions of the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of Republic Act No. 7308,otherwise known as Seed Industry Development Act of 1992 and to the provisions of the IRR of Executive Order No. 366, the creation of Philippine Fiber Industry Development Authority (PhilFIDA) dated May 29, 2013, the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) and the PhilFIDA jointly developed the General Guidelines on the Accreditation of Abaca Plant Nurseries (AAPN) for adoption and promulgation;

WHEREAS, the objective of AAPN is to ensure the production and distribution of quality abaca planting materials that are true-to-type of the variety and resistant from pests and diseases to farmers and industry stakeholders/players;

WHEREAS, the Abaca Industry is in the limelight of the Philippine Agriculture. It is one of the sectors in the Department of Agriculture (DA) that has been given priority to achieve the government's goal on food security, poverty alleviation, environmental stability, biodiversity conservation and climate change mitigation and adaptation;

WHEREAS, there is no developed policy on the AAPN at present to regulate the production and distribution of planting materials;

WHEREAS, the AAPN shall be able to regulate the production and distribution of abaca planting materials which will eventually assure the production of quality fibers and its by-products;

WHEREAS, the Abaca Plant Nursery Operators (APNO) shall be benefitted in selling their produced abaca seedlings and shall be given priority in acquiring identified abaca plant propagules from the government registered mother block nurseries. The APNO shall likewise have an access to technical assistance from the government thru its projects/programs pertaining to proper management and operation of the nursery.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, PROCESO J. ALCALA, Secretary of DA, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do hereby issue this circular prescribing the General Guidelines on the AAPN.

SECTION 1. Objectives. —

1.1. This Circular aims to prescribe the General Guidelines on the AAPN for the production and distribution of quality abaca planting materials essential in the growth and development of the abaca industry.

1.2. This shall serve as guidelines for abaca farmers and industry stakeholders/players who intend to commercialize the production and distribution of quality abaca planting materials. cSEDTC

SECTION 2. Scope. —

2.1. This Circular covers the criteria, requirements, policies and procedures in the accreditation of abaca plant nursery.

SECTION 3. Definition of Terms. —

3.1. Abaca — refers to herbaceous plant scientifically known as Musa textilis Nee and belongs to the family of Musacea. It is indigenous to the Philippines but has been introduced to Borneo, Indonesia and Central America. It is the source of abaca fiber considered as the strongest of all plant fibers.

3.2. Abaca Bract Mosaic Disease — refers to a malady or disorder caused by a virus which belongs to the genus Potyvirus in the family Potyviridae infecting both abaca and banana and can be transmitted in a non-persistent manner (i.e., retained by the vector for a short period) by at least three species of aphid, Pentalonia nigronervosa Coq, Aphis gossypii and Rhopalosiphum maidis.

3.3. Abaca Bunchy-Top Disease — refers to a malady or disorder caused by a virus infecting both abaca and banana. The virus belongs to the family Nanoviridae and is transmitted in a persistent manner by an aphid (Pentalonia nigronervosa Coq.).

3.4. Abaca Mosaic Disease — refers to a malady or disorder caused by the abaca mosaic virus infecting both abaca and banana and is reported as a member strain of the sugarcane mosaic subgroup of the genus Potyvirus, designated as SCMV-Ab (Gambley et al, 2004). The virus can be transmitted mechanically, through vegetative propagules and by aphid vectors including Aphis gossypii, Rhopalosiphum nympheae, and Aphis maidis but not by the banana aphid Pentalonia nigronervosa Coq., in a non-circulative and non-persistent manner.

3.5. Abaca Plant Nurseries — refer to the nurseries where Abaca Tissue Cultured Plantlets (ATCP) and conventional abaca corms and seed-pieces are raised for proper growth and development.

3.6. Abaca Plant Nursery Evaluators — refer to designated PhilFIDA and BPI officials authorized to conduct pre-evaluation of the nursery subject for accreditation and monitoring of accredited Abaca Plant Nurseries (APN).

3.7. Abaca Plant Propagation — refers to the process of production and multiplication of planting materials.

3.8. Abaca Tissue Culture Laboratory — refers to the facility that is responsible in the production of virus-free ATCP. The laboratory for plant tissue culture basically comprises three areas: (1) General laboratory or media preparation area; (2) Transfer Area; & (3) Culture Room.

3.9. Abaca Tissue Cultured Plantlets — refer to the abaca plants produced from aseptically growing plant tissues (shoot tip, meristem or inflorescence) on a nutrient culture medium of known composition in a controlled environment.

3.10. Accredited Abaca Plant Nurseries — refer to nurseries authorized by the government to produce and distribute good quality abaca planting materials, true-to-type of varieties and free from pests and diseases.

3.11. Accredited Abaca Tissue Culture Laboratories — refer to laboratories accredited by the BPI following A.O. No. 07 series 2012.

3.12. Certificate of Accreditation — refers to the certificate that entitles abaca nursery operators the rights and privileges to establish Abaca Nurseries in accordance with the terms and conditions set by BPI and PhilFIDA.

3.13. Conventional Planting Materials — refer to the planting materials such as sucker, corm, seedpiece or eyebud derived from a mother abaca plant.

3.14. Government Nurseries — refer to the nurseries owned and operated by government entities such as State Universities and Colleges (SUC), Local Government Unit (LGU), etc.

3.15. Mother Block Nursery — refers to the source of explants that will be used for the multiplication of plantlets, it can be either corms or conventional seedlings. SDAaTC

3.16. Mother Plant — refers to the parent source plant of recommended variety that produces propagative planting materials.

3.17. Pedigree Record — refers to a document that contains information on the origin, breed, growth and development, productivity and other traits of an abaca plant.

3.18. Private Nurseries — refer to nurseries owned and operated by private individuals, corporations, associations, cooperatives, etc.

3.19. Protected Semi-Permanent Abaca Plant Screenhouse — refers to a semi-permanent abaca plant screenhouse with screen walls and shade canopy which serve as a temporary house for tissue cultured plantlets undergoing acclimatization. These structures are designed to protect the plants from pests and adverse environmental conditions.

3.20. Recommended varieties — refer to varieties that possess desirable horticultural characteristics suitable for commercial production in a certain agro climatic/edaphic condition within a specific area or location.

3.21. Soil Media — refers to a mixture of 1 part river sand: 1 part garden soil: 1 part compost.

3.22. Soil Media Preparation — refers to the process of soil mixing (1 part river sand: 1 part garden soil: 1 part compost), sterilization and potting of soil mixture in polyethylene bags.

SECTION 4. Acronyms. —

4.1 AAPN — Accreditation of Abaca Plant Nursery

4.2 ABTD — Abaca Bunchy Top Disease

4.3 ABMD — Abaca Bract Mosaic Disease

4.4 AMD — Abaca Mosaic Disease

4.5 APN — Abaca Plant Nursery

4.6 APNO — Abaca Plant Nursery Operators

4.7 ATCL — Abaca Tissue Culture Laboratory

4.8 ATCP — Abaca Tissue Cultured Plantlets

4.9 BIR — Bureau of Internal Revenue

4.10 BPI — Bureau of Plant Industry

4.11 BPI-CRPSD — Bureau of Plant Industry-Crop Research and Production Support Division

4.12 CDA — Cooperative Development Authority

4.13 DA — Department of Agriculture

4.14 DOLE — Department of Labor and Employment

4.15 DTI — Department of Trade and Industry

4.16 PhilFIDA — Philippine Fiber Industry Development Authority

4.17 NSQCSD — National Seed Quality Control Services Division

4.18 RAPNE — Regional Abaca Plant Nursery Evaluators

4.19 SEC — Securities and Exchange Commission

SECTION 5. Criteria for Accreditation. —

5.1 The applicants must be the owner, nursery operator or manager and preferably a member of farmers' organization, association or cooperative. They must have propagators who have undergone training on nursery establishment and management and precepts/principles on abaca propagation conducted by BPI and PhilFIDA and its operating Regional Offices.

SECTION 6. Requirements. —

6.1 Documents to be submitted: acEHCD

6.1.1 Private Nurseries

• Letter of Intent (See Appendix 1)

• Application Form (See Appendix 2)

• Mayor's Permit

• Stock Inventory Report

• Certificate of Registration from Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) for Individual, Cooperative Development Authority (CDA)/Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) for Cooperatives and Associations, and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for Corporation

• Certificate of Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) Registration

• Authenticated tax clearance for renewal

• Certification of disease-free planting materials issued either by PhilFIDA, BPI or accredited diagnostic laboratories.

• Location map, lay-out plan and photos of the abaca nursery

• Certificate of training attendance

• Official receipt of AAPN fee of Php1,000.00

6.1.2 Government Nurseries

• Letter of Intent (See Appendix 1)

• Application Form (See Appendix 2)

• Stock Inventory Report

• Certificate of Ownership

• Location map, lay-out plan and photos of the abaca nursery

 

• Official receipt of AAPN Fee of Php1,000.00

6.2 Nursery Requirements:

6.2.1 The nursery shall have been established and operating for at least one (1) year prior to application.

6.2.2 The nursery shall have a minimum area of 1,500sq.m. and stock inventory composed of ATCP and conventional planting materials like seedpieces valued not less than Php100,000.00 during the evaluation period.

6.2.3 A Mother Block Nursery shall have been established with a minimum area of 36sq.m. planted and with at least 30 plants of recommended varieties. (Appendix 3)

6.2.4 Permanent placard/signboard indicating the name of the establishment, operator/manager/owner, address and contact number shall be installed.

 After the approval of the certificate, accreditation number and expiration date shall be added following the required size of 1.0m long and 0.5m wide using flat G.I sheet.

6.2.5 Shall have the following facilities and characteristics:

• Water source

• Potting shed

• Bodega (storage for chemicals, fertilizers and other nursery supplies)

• Propagating equipment or supplies

• Protected screenhouse (Appendix 4)

• Compost pit

• Accessible through any means of land transportation

• Topography should be flat/even

• Should have liners with each liner having both ATCP and conventional seedlings of a true-to-type abaca variety.

SECTION 7. Management Practices. —

7.1 The applicant shall follow the required management practices for the establishment of AAPN. (Appendix 5)

SECTION 8. Policies. —

8.1 The Bureau of Plant Industry-Crop Research and Production Support Division (BPI-CRPSD) and PhilFIDA shall be responsible in the AAPN.

8.2 The PhilFIDA shall nominate personnel to be designated as Regional Abaca Plant Nursery Evaluators (RAPNE) in addition to existing BPI designated nursery evaluators.

8.3 The PhilFIDA and BPI designated evaluators shall evaluate the applicant's documents and nursery. The result of evaluation shall be submitted to BPI.

8.4 The PhilFIDA and BPI evaluators shall conduct continuous monitoring of the accredited nurseries.

8.5 The BPI and PhilFIDA shall designate post accreditation monitoring team composed of staff from the BPI-CRPSD, National Seed Quality Control Services Division (NSQCSD) and PhilFIDA. The team shall conduct inspection as the needs arise during dispute, violation and non-compliance within the period of accreditation.

8.6 The accredited nurseries shall be given priority in the procurement activities of the DA, LGUs, PhilFIDA and other agencies. SDHTEC

8.7 The winning bidders (APNO) in the procurement activities in the DA, PhilFIDA and other agencies shall secure additional planting materials from AAPN.

8.8 The BPI upon the recommendation of PhilFIDA shall cancel certificate of accreditation in case of non-compliance to policies and requirements stipulated in this Department Circular. However, appropriate notice should be issued prior to cancellation. (Appendix 6)

- 1st Offense — Reprimand

- 2nd Offense — Cancellation of Certificate of Accreditation

- 3rd Offense — Black Listed

8.9 Certificate of accreditation shall be valid for three (3) years.

8.10 Accredited plant nursery operators shall submit quarterly stock inventory report of available planting materials to designated RAPNE for submission to PhilFIDA copy furnished BPI-CRPSD.

SECTION 9. Procedure. —

9.1 The applicant shall follow the procedures for applying for an AAPN. (Appendix 7)

SECTION 10. Separability Clause. —

The provisions of the rules and regulations are declared to be separable and if any provisions or application hereof is held invalid or unconstitutional, the validity of the other provisions shall not be affected.

SECTION 11. Repealing Clause. —

All rules and regulations, circulars, directives, and/or orders or parts thereof, inconsistent with any of the provisions of these rules and regulations are hereby repealed, modified, and/or amended accordingly.

SECTION 12. Effectivity. —

This Circular shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in a newspaper of general circulation and in the DA and PhilFIDA Websites.

(SGD.) PROCESO J. ALCALASecretary, Department of Agriculture

APPENDIX 1

Sample Letter of Intent

Letter of Intent

CLARITO M. BARRON, Ph.D., CESO IV

Thru: PhilFIDA Regional Director

Dear Director Barron,

I would like to signify my intention to apply as an accredited Abaca Plant Nursery Operator under the Abaca Plant Nurseries Accreditation Program of this agency. Rest assured that all the criteria and requirements stipulated in D.C. No. ___ series of 2016 will be complied and will abide the accreditation guidelines when granted.

Thank you and hoping for your favorable action.

Sincerely yours,

___________________________

Owner/Operator/Name of Nursery

Date: _________

APPENDIX 2

PhilFIDA AAPN-Form #1

Application Form

Department of Agriculture

 

	[ ] New	[ ] Renewal
Crop/s Applied ____________________________________________________
Name of Applicant _________________________________________________
Name of the Business Establishment ___________________________________
Address __________________________________________________________
Contact No. _______________________________________________________
Region ___________________________________________________________
Location of Nursery ________________________________________________
Area of Nursery (sq.m.) _________________
Status of Ownership	____________________

I hereby certify that I will abide and follow the guidelines/instructions of the Philippine Fiber Industry Development Authority for proper nursery management.

_______________

Applicant

EVALUATED BY:

__________________

Designated Evaluator

__________________

Office

Copy Distributed (2 copies)

PhilFIDA Regional Office

Date of Application: _________

APPENDIX 3

Mother Block Nursery Requirements

1. Mother plant should be healthy, true-to-type and free from diseases and pests, especially virus diseases.

2. The abaca plant must be indexed to check the presence of viruses such as Abaca Bunchy Top Disease (ABTD), Abaca Mosaic Disease (AMD) and Abaca Bract Mosaic Disease (ABMD).

3. Mother plant should be raised/grown under insect proof screenhouse.

4. Mother nursery must be located away from other banana plantations with an isolation distance of 500m to maintain purity and to avoid spread of virus diseases.

5. Mother plants should be grown under very good management condition so as to facilitate the true expression of traits. AScHCD

6. Individual plants should be tagged with a master code number so that the plantlets developed could be traced back to the mother plant.

7. Pedigree record and source of each mother plant should be maintained and catalogued.

APPENDIX 4

Protected Semi-permanent Abaca Plant Screenhouse

Area: 36 sq.m.
Estimated Cost: Php 333,765.18
Material Description	Total QTY.	Unit of issue
Cement (40kg)
CHB (4")	54	bags
Sand	300	pcs
Gravel	2	cu.m
Filling Materials	6	cu.m
Plywood (1/2x4'x8')	54	cu.m
Coco-lumber (2"x2"x12')	3	pcs
2" dia. G.I. Pipe (S40)	32	pcs
1 3/4 dia. G.I. Pipe (S40)	12	pcs
1 1/4 dia. G.I. Pipe (S40)	28	pcs
Welding Rod	4	pcs
G.I. Tire wire #16	50	kg
Assorted nails #1, 2, 3,4	20	kg
Def. bars 10mmx12 meters	8	kg
3/16" x 1" flat bar	68	pcs
Black net, nylon or opal screen	24	pcs
3/16" dia. Nut	323	sq.m.
3/16" dia. Bolt	120	pcs
Rivets	120	pcs
Water hose	500	pcs
Water container	20	m
PVC plain faucet	1	pc
Teflon tape (1/2")	1	pc
Elbow with thread	2	pcs
	2	pcs

APPENDIX 5

Management Practices

1. Preparation of rooted plantlets coming from Accredited Abaca Tissue Culture Laboratories and sources of conventional planting materials for transport to nurseries.

2. Nursery Management of Tissue Culture Derived Abaca Plantlets

2.1 Construction of Protected Semi-permanent Screen House

2.2 Soil Media Preparation

2.2.1 Prepare the soil media by mixing 1 portion of sand or any other porous material to 1 portion of garden soil and 1 portion of compost (1:1:1 sand or any other porous material: garden soil: compost)

2.2.2 Sterilize the soil growing media by sun-drying or by heating over a fire to protect the plantlets/seedlings from any soil-borne pests.

2.2.3 Bag the soil mix in appropriate polyethylene bags. Arrange them inside the nursery providing an aisle convenient for workers mobility.

2.3 Care and maintenance of plantlets/seedlings in the nursery

2.3.1 Plant individual abaca plantlet/seedling in the plastic bag filled with the mixed media.

2.3.2 Water the bagged plantlet/seedling regularly.

2.3.3 Spray foliar fertilizer at the recommended dosage indicated in the label.

2.3.4 Spray the plantlet/seedling with insecticide once a month.

2.3.5 The abaca plantlet/seedling is ready for field transplanting after 3 to 4 months.

APPENDIX 6

Grounds for Cancellation of Certificates

	Offenses	Penalties
1.	Falsification of Certificate of	1st Offense — Black Listed
	Accreditation.
2.	Operating with expired certificate of	1st Offense — Reprimand
	accreditation.	2nd Offense — Black Listed
3.	Misdeclaration of conventionally	1st Offense — Reprimand
	produced abaca planting materials as	2nd Offense — Cancellation of Certificate
	tissue cultured.*	3rd Offense — Black Listed
4.	Buying/selling of abaca planting	1st Offense — Reprimand
	materials from non-accredited plant	2nd Offense — Cancellation of Certificate
	nurseries.	3rd Offense — Black Listed
5.	Non-display of permanent sign board	1st Offense — Reprimand
	with the required size and necessary	2nd Offense — Cancellation of Certificate
	information.	3rd Offense — Black Listed
6.	Non-maintenance of the required	1st Offense — Reprimand
	nursery facilities such as protected	2nd Offense — Cancellation of Certificate
	screen house, bodega, propagating	3rd Offense — Black Listed
	equipment.
7.	Non-submission of the nursery	1st Offense — Reprimand
	quarterly stock inventory report of	2nd Offense — Cancellation of Certificate
	available planting materials to	3rd Offense — Black Listed
	designated plant nursery evaluators
	for submission to PhilFIDA and BPI-CRPSD.
8.	Assigning a new propagator who has	1st Offense — Reprimand
	not undergone training on nursery	2nd Offense — Cancellation of Certificate
	establishment and management and	3rd Offense — Black Listed
	principles on abaca propagation
	conducted by BPI and PhilFIDA.
9.	Transfer of certificate of accreditation	1st Offense — Reprimand
	to other nursery operator	2nd Offense — Cancellation of Certificate
		3rd Offense — Black Listed
*	The applicant shall submit OR and certification from the source

APPENDIX 7

Procedure

1. The applicant shall get the application form and other documents from PhilFIDA Regional/Provincial Offices.

2. The applicant shall submit the letter of intent, accomplished application form, inventory of planting materials and all other documentary requirements to PhilFIDA Regional/Provincial Offices.

3. The PhilFIDA shall check the completeness of submitted application, required documents and assign a designated Regional Abaca Plant Nursery Evaluator (RAPNE).

4. The applicant shall pay the accreditation fee upon checking completeness of submitted documents to any authorized BPI Office or laboratory in the region.

5. The designated PhilFIDA and BPI Plant Nursery Evaluators shall conduct the field inspection/evaluation and prepare evaluation report. AcICHD

6. RAPNEs shall submit documents and evaluation report to the BPI-CRPSD thru the concerned PhilFIDA-Regional Office.

7. The BPI-CRPSD shall assess and evaluate the submitted documents and recommend for approval by the BPI Director.

8. The BPI Director shall issue the Certificate of Accreditation to the nursery operator copy furnished PhilFIDA Central Office and concerned Regional Office.