DA GIVES MORE INCENTIVES TO FARMERS
THE Department of Agriculture (DA) has committed to improve government support to local farmers to boost the country’s rice buffer stocks and ensure the presence of affordable rice in the market.
In a statement on Wednesday, Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol said the DA, through a new program, would provide free seeds to farmers who sell their produce to the National Food Authority (NFA) to increase the agency’s local palay procurement performance and “ensure higher utilization of highyielding rice varieties.”
Piñol said he had directed Assistant Secretary Andrew Villacorta, head of the National Rice Program of the DA, to formulate the policies and guidelines for the Free Seeds Incentives Program for farmers who will deliver their palay to the NFA.
The program, which will be on top of the other incentives already offered by the DA to farmers cooperatives and associations, will be implemented beginning the next harvest season in the first quarter of 2019, he added.
“I suggested that for every four metric tons delivered to the NFA by individual farmers or farmers associations and cooperatives, they will be given one bag of PhilRice-developed inbred rice seeds which would be a choice of RC222, RC160, RC300, RC216 or RC238,” said Piñol.
“For every eight metric tons of palay delivered, the farmers or their cooperatives and associations will be given a bag of commercial hybrid seeds which would include such brands as SL8, SL12, Bigante, Arize or Seedworks,” he added.
According to Piñol, the agriculture sector had been experiencing “low and slow adoption” of good quality inbred and hybrid rice seeds in the past decades due to higher cost of the seeds.
He cited that seeds of such kind are priced at up to P5,000 per bag good for one hectare (ha).
The agriculture chief, however, pointed out that incorporating good quality inbred and hybrid seeds have given “dramatic” increases in the farm yield of Filipino farmers.
“PhilRice recommended Inbred Varieties, especially RC222, which could yield as much as 8 to 10 metric tons (MT) per hectare and are priced lower at P1,560 per bag good for one hectare,” said Piñol.
“Commercial Hybrid Rice Seeds, on the other hand, have yielded as much as 10 to 14 metric tons per hectare in areas where the growing conditions are ideal,” he added.
To ensure high yields, Piñol said his department will make seeds available to farmers based on the field trials conducted in specific areas which showed the adaptability of the rice variety to the soil and weather conditions in a locality.
At present, the national average yield of the Filipino rice farmers using traditional rice seed varieties is at 4.1 MT/ha.
Piñol said the DA is targeting a national average of 6 MT/ha per harvest by introducing good quality seeds, solar-powered irrigation systems (SPIS), easy access financing and farm mechanization.
Once achieved, he said the country’s rice production may increase by about 4.8 million MT of paddy rice annually or 3.12 million MT of milled rice. This “would more than cover” the current shortfall of about 1.2 million MT, Piñol added.
“The DA has committed to reward farmers associations and cooperatives with farm machinery and equipment ranging from turtle tillers, tractors, harvesters and even solar powered irrigation systems based on the volume of rice they sell to the NFA,” said Piñol.
Furthermore, he said the Farm Machine and Equipment Incentives Program was already approved by the NFA Council (NFAC) for adoption while the Free Seeds Incentives Program will be presented to the NFAC in its special meeting next week.