Dr. Darwin M. Landicho received a Recognition Award from the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) of the Department of Agriculture on January 22, 2025, for his publication titled “Status of Cassava Witches' Broom Disease in the Philippines and Identification of Pathogens by Metagenomic Analysis.”  The award presentation occured during the BPI’s 95th Anniversary Celebration in Manila, Philippines. 

The Bureau recognized Dr. Landicho's work as a key contribution to detecting plant quarantine pests and diseases. His research helps improve the scientific and regulatory aspects of the plant quarantine system, making him an important asset to the BPI in connecting research, regulation, and policy-making. 

Dr. Landicho is currently the Supervising Agriculturist at the National Plant Quarantine Services Division of the BPI. He earned his Doctor of Agricultural Science degree from Nagoya University on September 27, 2024, under the ASCI Transnational Doctoral Programs for Leading Professionals in Asian Countries. He was a recipient of the Nagoya University-Southeast Asian Regional Center for Research in Agriculture (NU-SEARCA) Joint PhD Scholarship. His research was supervised by Dr. Sotaro Chiba from the Graduate School of Bioagricultural Sciences and guided locally by Dr. Marita Pinili from UPLB.