As part of the technical assistance provided by the bureau, DA-BAFS Compliance Assistance Team served as resource person on the conduct of Capability Building Activities on PNS for Organic Agriculture in Magarao, Camarines Sur (Bicol Region) from April 8 to 11, 2025.This activity aimed to capacitate the PGS groups in Bicol Region on the knowledge and skills on Organic Agriculture. The 4-day capacity building focuses on the discussion of the Organic Agriculture technical regulations, Philippine National Standards (PNS) on Organic Crop production and other relevant PNS.#OAtechnicalassisstance#PGSforOA#OrganicAgriculture#BAFSonthemove#DABAFS Monitoring of Core PGS Farmer-Members April 21, 2025 Capability Building Activities on PNS for Organic Agriculture April 15, 2025 Inspections of Core PGS Farmer-Members April 15, 2025 A supervised certification service was provided to the PGS group in Sta. Maria, Isabela April 15, 2025 DA-BAFS conducted the first surveillance of the Batangas Organic and Natural Farming Agriculture Cooperative (BONFAC) April 15, 2025 Benchmarking Philrice and PCC – Immersive Artifact April 15, 2025 DA-BAFS collaborates with University of the Philippines Los Baños-Agricultural Machinery Testing and Evaluation Center (UPLB-AMTEC) and DA-Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization DA-PHilMech. April 4, 2025 The DA-BAFS Technical Services Division (TSD) successfully conducted the FGD with 14 PhilGAP-certified farms in CALABARZON. April 3, 2025 Other Post

A joint inspection by the DA- BAFS and DA- Regional Field Office Region XI, with support from regional and local agricultural offices, verified the compliance of five core farmer- members with Philippine National Organic Agriculture Standards, April 8-10, 2025. The inspection was conducted to verify their compliance with the Philippine National Standard relevant to organic agriculture.Representatives from the Agricultural Training Institute- Regional Training Center, Regional Organic Agriculture Program, Provincial Agriculturists Office of Davao de Oro and Municipal Agriculture Office of Mawab and Compostela assisted in the activity.#OAassessment#OrganicAgriculture#PGSforOA#BAFSonthemove#DABAFS  Monitoring of Core PGS Farmer-Members April 21, 2025 Inspections of Core PGS Farmer-Members April 15, 2025 A supervised certification service was provided to the PGS group in Sta. Maria, Isabela April 15, 2025 DA-BAFS conducted the first surveillance of the Batangas Organic and Natural Farming Agriculture Cooperative (BONFAC) April 15, 2025 Benchmarking Philrice and PCC – Immersive Artifact April 15, 2025 DA-BAFS collaborates with University of the Philippines Los Baños-Agricultural Machinery Testing and Evaluation Center (UPLB-AMTEC) and DA-Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization DA-PHilMech. April 4, 2025 The DA-BAFS Technical Services Division (TSD) successfully conducted the FGD with 14 PhilGAP-certified farms in CALABARZON. April 3, 2025 DA-BAFS Conducts Initial Surveillance of ALASFA PGS Group in Leyte April 3, 2025 Other Post

A supervised certification service was provided to the PGS group in Sta. Maria, Isabela on April 8 to 11, 2025. This technical assistance provided by DA-BAFS Compliance Assessment Team, ATI-RTC Cagayan Valley and DA-RFO Cagayan Valley Organic Agriculture Program to a PGS group is intended to guide peer reviewers in verifying the compliance of applicant farmer members with the PGS group’s Internal Standards (IS). Further, the activity aims that the organic certification process is conducted in full compliance with the group’s Manual of Operations (MOO).#OAtechnicalassistance#PGSforOA#OrganicAgriculture#BAFSonthemove#DABAFS  A supervised certification service was provided to the PGS group in Sta. Maria, Isabela April 15, 2025 DA-BAFS conducted the first surveillance of the Batangas Organic and Natural Farming Agriculture Cooperative (BONFAC) April 15, 2025 Benchmarking Philrice and PCC – Immersive Artifact April 15, 2025 DA-BAFS collaborates with University of the Philippines Los Baños-Agricultural Machinery Testing and Evaluation Center (UPLB-AMTEC) and DA-Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization DA-PHilMech. April 4, 2025 The DA-BAFS Technical Services Division (TSD) successfully conducted the FGD with 14 PhilGAP-certified farms in CALABARZON. April 3, 2025 DA-BAFS Conducts Initial Surveillance of ALASFA PGS Group in Leyte April 3, 2025 Inspection of Core PGS Farmer-Members, Province of Ifugao April 3, 2025 Preinspection to Participatory Guarantee System (PGS) Core Farmer-Members at San Vicente, Palawan March 31, 2025 Other Post

San Jose, Batangas – The Department of Agriculture – Bureau of Agriculture and Fisheries Standards (DA-BAFS) conducted the first surveillance of the Batangas Organic and Natural Farming Agriculture Cooperative (BONFAC) on April 8–10, 2025 to evaluate its continued compliance as an accredited Organic Certifying Body (OCB). The surveillance included an office-based assessment and witnessing of peer review activities. Technical personnel from the DA Regional Field Office and the Agricultural Training Institute – Regional Training Center (ATI-RTC) CALABARZON assisted in the conduct of the activity. BONFAC demonstrated strong collaboration with key partners, including the Local Government Unit of San Jose, DA-RFO, and ATI-RTC CALABARZON. Their active coordination with these stakeholders supports their compliance efforts and commitment to sustainable organic agriculture. Following the surveillance, BONFAC is required to submit acceptable corrections and corrective actions to address the noncompliances identified. Once verified, the group may be granted a Certificate of Continuing Accreditation for Crop Production and Animal Production. This surveillance highlights the importance of continuous improvement and stakeholder support in sustaining credible organic certification under the PGS system. #OAassessment #PGSforOA #OrganicAgriculture #BAFSonthemove #DABAFS See less Benchmarking Philrice and PCC – Immersive Artifact April 15, 2025 DA-BAFS collaborates with University of the Philippines Los Baños-Agricultural Machinery Testing and Evaluation Center (UPLB-AMTEC) and DA-Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization DA-PHilMech. April 4, 2025 The DA-BAFS Technical Services Division (TSD) successfully conducted the FGD with 14 PhilGAP-certified farms in CALABARZON. April 3, 2025 DA-BAFS Conducts Initial Surveillance of ALASFA PGS Group in Leyte April 3, 2025 Inspection of Core PGS Farmer-Members, Province of Ifugao April 3, 2025 Preinspection to Participatory Guarantee System (PGS) Core Farmer-Members at San Vicente, Palawan March 31, 2025 Supervised Certification of Participatory Guarantee System (PGS) Group March 31, 2025 Sowing Seeds of Equality: BAFS’ Women’s Month Empowerment March 31, 2025 Other Post

The DA-BAFS conducted a benchmarking activity with the @DA-Philippine Carabao Center (PCC) and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) last April 10-11, 2025. This initiative aims to gather insights from these government agencies who are recognized as models because of their well established Knowledge Management Systems (KMS), to guide the development and operationalization of the Bureau’s own KMS in the coming years. The information-sharing sessions focused on the agencies’ KM frameworks, strategies, and best practices, with the end goal of identifying effective strategies for knowledge capture, sharing, and utilization techniques; learning about successful KM tools and technologies, organizational structures and processes facilitating KM implementation, and gathering insights on how to foster a knowledge-sharing culture. The output of this immersion is expected to provide valuable inputs for DA-BAFS’ divisions, enabling the organization to develop a robust and contextually relevant KMS workplan.### #bafs #kms #PhilRice #pcc    Benchmarking Philrice and PCC – Immersive Artifact April 15, 2025 DA-BAFS collaborates with University of the Philippines Los Baños-Agricultural Machinery Testing and Evaluation Center (UPLB-AMTEC) and DA-Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization DA-PHilMech. April 4, 2025 The DA-BAFS Technical Services Division (TSD) successfully conducted the FGD with 14 PhilGAP-certified farms in CALABARZON. April 3, 2025 DA-BAFS Conducts Initial Surveillance of ALASFA PGS Group in Leyte April 3, 2025 Inspection of Core PGS Farmer-Members, Province of Ifugao April 3, 2025 Preinspection to Participatory Guarantee System (PGS) Core Farmer-Members at San Vicente, Palawan March 31, 2025 Supervised Certification of Participatory Guarantee System (PGS) Group March 31, 2025 Sowing Seeds of Equality: BAFS’ Women’s Month Empowerment March 31, 2025 Other Post