President Marcos has underscored the importance of science-based farming as he led the awarding of this year's Gawad Saka national winners and announced the rollout of 16 mobile soil laboratories across all regions.

In his remarks during the presentation of the 50th Gawad Saka national awardees in Muñoz, Nueva Ecija, the President said the mobile soil labs will help reduce input costs by providing region-based data on what interventions are needed per farm.

“Phase 1 pa lang ito (This is just phase 1),” he said on Monday, June 30.

“Sa aking palagay ha, unang salta pa lang, mababawasan ang gastos natin dahil alam na alam ngayon natin kung gaano karami ang ilalagay na ayuda na fertilizer, kung gaano titigil (In my opinion, even on the first rollout, we can lower our costs because we now know exactly how much fertilizer support to give, and when to stop),” he added.

According to Marcos, the project would bring “major savings” since the government would know the right amount to apply.

“Kaya malaking mababawas sa ating gastos kasi alam na alam na natin, eksakto lang ang ibibigay natin (That’s why there will be major savings since we now know precisely what to apply),” he said.

“Hindi tayo basta lagay nang lagay, baka sakaling gumanda (We won't just keep adding and hoping it works),” he added.

The President said each region will receive a mobile soil lab that will rotate around provinces before permanent structures are eventually built.

The Mobile Soil Laboratory (MSL), a ten-wheeler truck equipped with equipment, facilities, resources, and safety features, aims to provide accurate and timely results to agricultural stakeholders.

Meanwhile, in a town hall segment, President Marcos said new technology and modern methods could make farming more attractive and encourage more youth to consider careers in agriculture.

“Ang average age ng ating mga magsasaka at saka mangingisda masyado nang mataas (The average age of our farmers and fisherfolk is already too high),” he said.

“Ang nakakaunawa at mga talagang practitioner, ika nga, ng high-tech agriculture, intensive and extensive na type of agriculture, ay ang mga kabataan (The ones who understand and can actually practice high-tech, intensive and extensive agriculture are the youth),” he added.

In response to a question on rising farm input costs and low crop prices, Marcos said the government will continue to provide support through the Department of Agriculture (DA).

“Kahit anong presyo ang pagbenta natin ng bigas sa palengke, hindi magbabago ang buying price ng palay ng NFA (No matter the retail price of rice, the National Food Authority’s buying price for palay will not change),” he said.

He also said the DA is now centralizing bulk procurement of inputs to reduce costs, and that corn buying will resume through the NFA.

NFA Administrator Larry Lacson said they would pilot corn procurement in select areas next year.

Meanwhile, President Marcos assured farmers that planting insurance coverage has been widened and prepositioned assistance mechanisms are already in place in case of climate impacts and disasters.

“Kung puwede pang magtanim ulit, eh papasok na naman ang DA at tutulungan kayong makapagtanim ulit. Kung huli na, ay bibigyan kayo namin ng suporta (If it's still possible to replant, the DA will step in and help you replant. If not, we will give you support),” he said.

“Mas ready na tayo ngayon kaysa noong nakaraang taon (We are more ready now than last year),” he added.

Established in 1970, Gawad Saka is the DA’s most prestigious annual award to honor and recognize individuals, groups, and institutions in agriculture. This year’s awardees “embody innovation, resilience, and an unwavering commitment to food security and rural development.”