Project Smarter Approaches to Reinvigorate Agriculture as an Industry in the Philippines (Project SARAi) and i-POND: A Long-Range Wide Area Network (LoRaWAN)-based Pond Water Quality Control and Monitoring System for Shrimp Farms are poised to benefit more farmers following updates shared during the breakout session at a recently held activity, the International Smart City Exposition and Networking Engagement (iSCENE) 2025.
SARAi CENTRO to capacitate farmers nationwide
In its initial phases under the funding of the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-PCAARRD), Project SARAi provided decision-making tools for farmers through crop forecasts and site-specific crop advisories. The project involved nine crops for various stakeholders through a collaborative effort -with 11 State Universities and Colleges (SUCs), six National Government Agencies (NGAs), and 167 researchers across the country.
Following the project’s successful completion, the DOST allocated funding for its wider roll-out through the Grants-in-Aid program. The SARAi Centralized National Hub for Regional Operations (SARAi CENTRO) will implement SARAi throughout the Philippines by creating a central hub in UPLB that is networked and mirrored across all DOST Regional Offices.
Furthermore, the directive from the Office of the President aims to institutionalize Project SARAi. “Our team is working on Crop Characterization, Integrated Crop Management and Model Development, Crop-Environment Monitoring and Forecasting, and Knowledge Management and Mainstreaming to provide agricultural stakeholders with site-specific crop advisories nationwide,” stated Dr. Decibel Eslava of the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB).
By establishing a unified, near real-time agri-information system, SARAi CENTRO is set to empower producers, monitors, implementers, and decision-makers with the data they need to make swift, science-backed decisions, ultimately strengthening the food security of the Philippines.
i-POND set to benefit shrimp farms in Luzon
Engr. Glen D. Espena from Metals Industry Research and Development Center of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-MIRDC) presented updates on i-POND: A LoRaWAN-based Pond Water Quality Control and Monitoring System for Shrimp Farms.
In partnership with the Aqua Tierra Agri-Industrial Farms, Inc., Mindoro State University, and DOST-MIMAROPA, the DOST-Collaborative Research and Development to Leverage Philippine Economy (CRADLE) project led by MIRDC addresses the challenge of improving resource management in intensive shrimp farms which requires controlled water quality and heavy aeration.
Aqua Tierra farm operators said that the i-POND technology is “convenient, accurate, and time-saving.” To illustrate, Engr. Espeña shared that initial tests with the farm operators reported to demonstrate an increased survival rate of 17.5%, reduction of feed conversion ratio (FCR) by 10%, and decreased energy consumption.
With its capacity to provide real-time monitoring and remote access to farm operators, i-POND allows farm operators to continuously track water quality parameters, receive instant alerts and notifications to changes that occur in their ponds, and execute corrective actions to adjust water temperature, salinity, pH, and dissolved oxygen.
DOST-MIRDC offers their technology to businesses through two subscription tiers: (1) The basic subscription, which can be bought through a one-time fee of P200,000 per pond, includes a real-time monitoring of temperature, dissolved oxygen (DO), and salinity, as well as a local data storage and a one month free trial of advanced features of i-POND; and (2) The Advanced Subscription fee of P200,000 per pond and an additional P2,000 monthly subscription per pond includes Temp, DO, pH, salinity real-time monitoring, local and remote data storage, remote access, historical data analysis, and alerts and notifications for farm operators.
The breakout sessions aimed to introduce smart R&D technologies that resulted from R&D initiatives of both the public and private sectors to key decision makers, participants, and the general public. iSCENE 2025 was held from May 22 to 24, 2025 at the ICON Isabela Convention Center in Cauayan City, Isabela. This activity brought together representatives from the government, academe, industry, and international partners.