In August 11, 2015, marked another day in the history of Ilagan as the Department of Agriculture proclaimed the city as the new Corn Capital of the Philippines during its third cityhood anniversary. Former Sec. Proceso Alcala was represented by former Asec. Edilberto M. De Luna who travelled all the way to Ilagan to attend the momentous event.
Ilagan City is the 4th Largest City in the Philippines in terms of land area next to Zamboanga City, Puerto Prinsesa City and Davao City.
Equivalent to 155,767,000 kilos of corn per croppings enough for us to be the highest producer of quality corn in the Philippines
Corn Production in the Philippines
7,518,755.72
Our share to national is 2.07%
Corn Production in Region 2
1,801,194.10
Our share to the region is 8.65%
Corn Production in Province of Isabela
1,118,942.00
Our share to the province is 13.92%
Agriculture and fishery remains to be the main backbone of Ilagan’s economy. There are almost 38,716.50 hectares that are dedicated for agriculture suitable for crops, livestock and fish production.
SEASONAL CORN CALENDAR
Most of the industries in the city are agri-based. For the last ten years, there has been a great number of local investment in poultry and hog raising. There are seven poultry contract growers and 33 small and medium scale hog raisers in Ilagan. Other support facilities, warehouses and small rice mills, strategically located in different barangays of Ilagan address the storage needs of farmers during the harvest season.
The Department of Agriculture Regional Field Office 2 (DA-RFO2) and the city government of Ilagan had agreed to establish an I-Corn Complex worth P196.7 million. The agreement was reached after a consultation meeting led by the DA Region 2 officials and representatives from other concerned government agencies. The Department of Agriculture will provide P107 million while the city government of Ilagan will provide P89.7 million for the said complex that will serve as a one-stop agri-commercial center once completed. The I-Corn Complex will serve Ilagueño corn farmers including those from Isabela and the rest of Cagayan Valley. The establishment of the facility is also aimed to solve problems in corn production, particularly on drying during the wet season. The construction of the corn complex is in support to the Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act (AFMA), which aims to strengthen the agri-fisheries sector in a modernized perspective to attain food security, poverty alleviation, income enhancement and profitability, global competitiveness and sustainability. The complex is designed to be used as a post-harvest, processing and research facility that will ensure product quality and thus boost the income of farmers. It is expected to be operational by February 2024 with the operation of the Corn Innovation Center whose construction and implementation started in January 2023. The mechanical drying facility as one of its components will help farmers cope with losses and damage during calamities. The said corn complex facility is located at Barangay Marana 1st, where the city government donated the lot for the construction.
Pasa Small Reservoir Irrigation Project (PSRIP). The irrigation project is a $21.7 million government project in barangay Pasa, a joint undertaking between the South Korean government, through Korea International Cooperation Agency (Koica), and the Philippines, through the National Irrigation Administration and the local government of Isabela. The project entailed construction of a 34-meter high earth-filled dam across Pasa River, a reservoir with an active storage of 3.90 million cubic meters, with 5.93 kilometers of a main canal and 16.20 kilometers of lateral canals. According to authorities and government officials, the project is said to be under South Korea’s five-year program under the East Asia Climate Change Partnership to address climate change and to bolster Green Growth in Asia. It was built to help mitigate floods with its small water impounding or catchment basin features aside from irrigating more farmlands in the province, the project is also aimed at reducing the impact of climate change and promoting water management in rural areas. The dam is expected to irrigate eight hundred (800) hectares of farmlands, covering the barangays of Pasa, Santa Victoria, Fuyo, Morado and Minabang, all within Ilagan City, and should benefit seven hundred forty seven (747) families in the province of Isabela. Also, the authorities added that the Pasa Dam project would further fortify Isabela as the country’s leading agriculture province, which has kept the title as a top corn producer and second in rice production.
Free hybrid corn seeds distributed to farmers affected by continuous rain and other calamities.