Research

As the national university, we champion and support innovative research that addresses the country’s most pressing challenges.

13 Oct 2025

Those who start smoking at a younger age are likely to become more frequent and heavier smokers later in life

Understanding the relationship between age at smoking initiation and later smoking intensity is crucial for assessing future health consequences of...

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08 Oct 2025

Study finds significant gaps in menstrual hygiene management across six global cities, including Manila

The study “Exploring the Availability and Accessibility of Menstrual Friendly Public Toilets (MFPTs) in Urban Spaces” examines public toilet facilities...

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24 Sep 2025

Supplements can enhance the textural and nutritional qualities of rice

This study looked at how adding supplements like rapeseed oil, dried wasabi powder, and dried chili pepper powder changes the...

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23 Sep 2025

Economic reasons are a significant factor why microentrepreneurs remain in flood-prone areas

The number of establishments (89% of the total establishments in the Philippines) and people employed by micro enterprises makes it...

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04 Sep 2025

What does queerness mean to a young Filipino student in another Southeast Asian country? A novel’s chapter explores it.

In the chapter “New Boy”, Pau, a Filipino exchange student from Tagum City, attends classes in photography and Thai arts...

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03 Sep 2025

In the Philippines, we share a long-standing connection with pigs both archaeologically and culturally

Pigs play a very significant role in our society. They are not only seen as a food source but also...

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02 Sep 2025

Media representations of the minority groups of Moros and Chinese served colonial goals

Nation-building remains an important post-colonial project in the Philippines, as evidenced by the continued relevance of the mandatory Rizal courses,...

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29 Aug 2025

Smoking is a core part of the identity and community life of agricultural workers

Smoking is considered a serious health threat, particularly in the context of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Several studies...

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28 Aug 2025

PH reproductive health law needs to better address contraceptive access for lower-income women

The implementation of the Responsible Parenthood and Reproductive Health Law represents a major policy shift aimed at increasing access to...

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27 Aug 2025

Despite centuries of stigma, babywearing survives as a marginalized practice turned into a trend

For centuries, Indigenous communities in the Philippines and around the world have used baby carriers and slings to help them...

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13 Aug 2025

Food safety risk assessment will help the Philippines manage shellfish-related hepatitis A virus health risks

This study gathered information to establish baseline data on the potential risks of the hepatitis A virus (HAV) in the...

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08 Jul 2025

UP Manila

Deep learning with convolutional neural networks to assess rice plant diseases performs very well

As with many Asian countries, rice is a principal food in the Philippines providing nearly half of the daily caloric...

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Research

This article explains the factors that affect the productivity and efficiency of the Robusta coffee farms in Sultan Kudarat, Philippines. It aims to assist Robusta coffee farmers in identifying significant production inputs that will increase their farms’ productivity and the important factors that might increase or decrease their technical efficiency. Productivity refers to the output produced by the coffee farms, while efficiency refers to how well these farms convert their inputs into outputs.

The factors that affect productivity are inputs such as land, fertilizer, and the number of trees. Meanwhile, the factors considered to affect technical efficiency include elevation, as well as sociodemographic and climatological factors. Regarding inputs, fertilizer and the number of trees significantly increase the productivity of these farms. In contrast, increasing the land is associated with decreasing productivity.

In terms of technical efficiency, only coffee farming income and elevation were significant factors. Elevation can largely affect the productivity and efficiency of agricultural production. At high elevations, the technical efficiency of Robusta coffee farms decreases. Furthermore, comparing the average technical efficiency across low, medium, and high elevations, coffee farms at medium elevations had the highest average technical efficiency. This poses significant implications for sustainability, particularly the promotion of medium-elevation coffee farming instead of highland coffee farming. High-elevation coffee farming is associated with increased input application, increased erosion risks, and unsustainable land use, as opposed to medium-elevation farming.

Medium-elevation farming may then promote sustainable development while ensuring efficiency and environmental sustainability. The research proposes technical efficiency improvement recommendations, including promoting coffee agroforestry systems and ecolabelling at medium elevations, such as shade-grown coffee, to promote sustainable production in Robusta coffee farms by assigning a premium to consumers demanding environmental conservation.

Authors: Mark James S. Saguimpa (Agri-Aqua Value Chain Laboratory, University of the Philippines Mindanao) and Larry N. Digal (Agri-Aqua Value Chain Laboratory, University of the Philippines Mindanao | School of Management, University of the Philippines Mindanao)

Read the full paper: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11629-024-8746-1

Image by Παῦλος from Pixabay