Masbate farmers lose P70M to El Niño

LEGAZPI CITY: Over P70 million in rice production was lost due to the negative impact of the El Niño phenomenon in the province of Masbate, Lovella Guarin, regional spokesman of the Department of Agriculture (DA), said on Monday.

Based on the data presented by Guarin during a press briefing at the Philippine Statistics Office in Rawis, Legazpi City, around 1,120 hectares of rice lands and 730 farmers have been affected by the dry spell in Cawayan town, Masbate.

At least 1,025 hectares of palay have been totally damaged and an estimated 2,565 metric tons of palay production have been lost or an equivalent of P70,605,000.

The DA here is monitoring the impacts of El Niño, which is expected to persist until May 2024.

Guarin said that Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, and Catanduanes may face dry conditions or experience below normal rainfall in the coming months.

The forecasted rainfall in March and April is favorable for harvesting, but increased temperatures may reduce vegetable crop yields, Guarin added.

She said that the drought might impact 113,354 hectares in the region, although reports from other provinces have not reached the regional office yet.

One of the interventions undertaken by the agency is the timely sowing of diverse crops in preparation for the dry season.

Apart from early planting, the DA also introduced to farmers the heat-resistant varieties of palay and easily grown vegetables.

The Agriculture department intensified its campaign for the farmers to register their farm products including their domesticated and farm animals.

In December last year, the DA office in Bicol recorded 66,000 hectares planted with palay.

Rodel Tornilla, DA Bicol regional director, has ordered the early distribution of all the needed planting materials to farmers and urged them to take advantage of the rainy days to plant.

Hybrid varieties of palay and fertilizer discount vouchers were also distributed to the farmers registered under the Registry System for Basic Sector in Agriculture (RSBSA) in Bicol.

Each farmer was granted an assistance of P5,000 from the DA.

This support is part of the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund assistance aimed at benefiting local farmers.

DA Bicol said that the majority of more than 600,000 farmers in Bicol have registered their farm products to the Philippine Crop Insurance Corp. (PCIC).

Farmers with registered farm products can be indemnified if their farm suffers a setback due to El Niño.