TUGUEGARAO CITY, Cagayan — In a major bid to address the province’s chick supply gaps and lower production costs for local poultry raisers, the Department of Agriculture Regional Field Office 2 (DA-R02), through its Livestock Program, officially distributed ₱8.4 million worth of agricultural interventions to three cooperatives and one local government unit (LGU) in Cagayan on July 2, 2026.
Four selected beneficiaries each received a ₱2.1 million Chicken Multiplier Farm package, a comprehensive grant designed to establish self-sustaining, climate-resilient poultry production hubs in Northern Luzon.
The multi-million peso poultry packages were awarded to strategically located agricultural groups and local leadership in the province:
• Buguey Diversified Farmers Agriculture Cooperative (Buguey, Cagayan)
• Leron Farmers and Fisherfolk Association (Buguey, Cagayan)
• Masisit Dacal Livelihood Cooperative (Sanchez Mira, Cagayan)
• Local Government Unit (LGU) of Abulug, Cagayan
To ensure immediate operational capability and long-term sustainability, each ₱2.1 million grant consists of high-quality livestock, baseline nutrition, and poultry infrastructure: Breeding Hens-500 heads; roosters-100 heads; Poultry feed bags-379, and chicken housing facilities.
The climate-controlled housing units which include free range area are expected to heavily mitigate the impact of fluctuating local weather patterns, ensuring optimal bird comfort, reducing mortality rates, and maximizing egg production.
Under this project’s multiplier model, the recipient cooperatives and the LGU will manage the parent stock to produce high-quality chicks. These chicks will then be systematically distributed to cooperative members and nearby small-scale backyard poultry raisers.
“By producing chicks locally, they can stabilize supply, lower input costs, and improve survival rates for backyard and commercial growers.” Said Abulug Municipal Agriculturist Bernard Ojano.
Historically, Cagayan’s poultry sector has faced growth limitations due to a heavy dependence on out-of-region hatcheries. Importing day-old chicks from distant provinces frequently drives up retail prices and exposes fragile chicks to high transit mortality. Localizing production effectively resolves these logistical bottlenecks.
For countryside farmers, the project lowers the barrier to entry into the commercial poultry market by providing shared infrastructure and direct access to genetically improved birds without requiring heavy upfront capital.
The DA-R02 projects that this initiative will translate directly to:
• Faster Flock Turnover: Highly viable, locally hatched chicks mature predictably.
• Higher Yields: Improved genetics mean superior meat and egg outputs.
• Market Linkages: The managing associations are tasked with creating direct market channels, allowing smallholder farmers to pool their surplus birds and eggs to command better wholesale prices.
Through this localized distribution network, the DA-R02 Livestock Program continues to transform Cagayan’s agricultural landscape, turning rural communities from passive consumers into self-reliant producers of quality poultry.
Via Ferdinand Cortez