Large-scale coconut hybrid seedlings production by PCA underway
THERE ARE MANY things which need to be done to make our coconut sector more productive and competitive, and thereby raise incomes and improve the lot of our coconut farmers. At the core is the low productivity of the coconut palm itself compared with the other sources of vegetable oils, principally oil palm.
After decades of efforts, our plant breeders in the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) have developed at least 12 dwarf x tall coconut hybrids which have yield potentials of 4–6 tons copra per hectare per year (compared with the national average of 0.75 ton copra/ha/year).
Unfortunately, for all kinds of reasons, hybrids were ignored in the national coconut replanting program. But not anymore. Last year, at the instance of its previous administrator, Romulo de la Rosa, the PCA went all out in rehabilitating and mobilizing its five experiment stations in Zamboanga, Cotabato, Davao, Albay and Bohol for commercial production of coconut hybrids.
The PCA research department, led by breeder Ramon Rivera, responded, and by the end of 2018 the reported accomplishments were 300,000 hybrid nuts produced and 62,000 hybrid seedlings actually planted. The target for 2019 is to produce 800,000 hybrid nuts. With their 22,000 dwarf mother palms in the five PCA farms at full production, PCA by itself conservatively should be able to produce 2.2 million hybrid seedlings every year.
However, these will not be enough. We need to produce at least 10 million hybrids seedlings a year just to replace senile coconut trees. If we produce 10 million hybrids every year, we should be able to replace with high yielding materials our existing over 300 million palms over a thirty year period.
PRIVATE SECTOR APPROACH TO COCONUT HYBRID SEED PRODUCTION
For now, the established coconut groves in the PCA experiment stations make possible the initial rapid build-up of coconut hybrid seed production. However, in the long run, the more cost-effective and sustainable approach is by private seed producers. Since climbing coconut trees, emasculation (picking off of the male flowers) and actual dusting of pollen on the stigmas are very laborintensive operations, the more likely economically feasible and fortuitously inclusive business model is by small entrepreneurs