Baguio Midland Courier lensman Harley F. Palangchao won this year’s Agriculture Photo of the Year award during the 8th Bright Leaf Agriculture Journalism Awards.

Palangchao, together with winners in other categories were honored during the awards night at the Sunset Pavilion of Sofitel in Manila Thursday night.

The winning photo titled “Frostlandia” published in the front page of BMC’s Jan. 5 issue highlighted how farmers in Benguet have adopted to night frost.

Instead of the perennial negative reports about the ill-effects of night frost on tracks of vegetable farms in Benguet and some parts of Mountain Province, the photo that came out with a story discussed the best practices of the farmers in countering the weather phenomenon.

It is the second time that Palangchao won in the Bright Leaf Agriculture Journalism Awards, the prestigious awarding body for agriculture-related reports on print, television and radio and photographs published for regional, national and international audiences.

In 2012, he was awarded the Best Agriculture News Story from among regional entries published in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

His 2012 story dealt on the sad state of the Mount Data National Park, which is seriously threatened by massive encroachment of commercial vegetable farms in its pine and mossy covers.

Another Baguio-based photojournalist, Mauricio Victa of Business Mirror, won the Tobacco Photo of the Year award this year.

Other winners this year are: Tobacco Story of the Year won by Gabriel Cardinoza of the Philippine Daily Inquirer. He also won the Best Agriculture Story-National; Agriculture Story of the Year was won by Cherry Ann Lim and Liberty Pinili of Sun.Star Cebu. Lim also won the Best Agriculture Feature-Regional.

Flornisa Gitgano also of Sun.Star Cebu won the best agriculture news story-regional.

The Best Agriculture Feature Story-National went to Henrylito Tacio of the Marid Agribusiness Magazine; Best Agriculture TV program produced by Karen Verona of ABS-CBN Davao snared the top spot for television while the Best Agriculture Radio Program was won by Malu Cadelina Manar of dxND Kidapawan, North Cotabato.

Daily Tribune’s Editor-in-Chief Ninez Cacho-Olivares chaired this year’s panel of judges.

In his remarks, Philip Morris Fortune Tobacco Corp. Inc. president Paul Riley hailed the winners for their compelling photographs and stories that inspire respect.