There’s a lot to do amid tariffication - Yulo
AS BAGO City was again awarded as one of the top rice producing-local government units (LGUS) in the country, its top official said there’s still a lot to do especially with the ongoing rice tariffication.
For two consecutive years, the southern Negros Occidental city bagged the top rice producer in Western Visayas recognition during the 2018 Rice Achievers Awards held at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City on Thursday, May 30.
Mayor Nicholas Yulo, who received the award along with Da-western Visayas Regional Director Remelyn Recoter and City Agriculturist Carlito Indencia from Senate Committee Chair on Agriculture and Food Senator Cynthia Villar, said it’s a must for the city to help local farmers.
Yulo said with the rice tariffication law taking effect, necessary interventions from the local government are needed.
“Our goal is really to have our farmers be more efficient for them to compete with those of neighboring countries,” he said, adding that “more than the award, we aim to strengthen our production mainly in order to prepare for the possible adverse effects of the rice tariffication measure.”
The mayor pointed out that with rice tariffication, the goal should be having production cost at the lowest but maximize the yield.
“Aside from making them become competitive, efficiency enables farmers to improve livelihood and bring more money to their families,” Yulo said.
Known as the rice granary of Negros Occidental, Bago City was among the
15 municipalities and cities awarded by the Department of Agriculture (DA) this year.
It received a trophy and P1 million in project grant.
Data from City Agriculture Office showed that the region’s top rice producer has a total palay production of 119,528.36 metric tons for the whole of 2018 from a harvested area of 11,879.29 hectares.
Bago City’s average yield per hectare increased from 4.2 metric tons in 2017 to 4.43 metric tons last year, it added.
Yulo said the city now contributes 25 percent of the total rice production of the province.
He attributed the recent achievement to education, transfer of technology and mechanization.
“We are on this path already,” the mayor said, adding that “we have felt the initial effects of our efforts especially on farm mechanization.”
In December 2018, the Provincial Government of Negros Occidental piloted the farm mechanization program in the city.
The 200-hectare model rice farm is comprised of 160 farmers, who are members of Newton- camingawan-para (Necapa) Farmers Association in Barangay Taloc.
Citing the statement of Governor Alfredo Marañon Jr., Yulo said the only way to go is mechanization.
He said that the award will also inspire the local government to do more, stressing that there is still a long way to go as neighbors are producing six metric tons per hectare at lower production cost.
“The rice tariffication has just taken off,” Yulo said, adding that farmers are the ones producing the food for the nation but remains as one of the poorest sectors “so we have to uplift them.”
Recoter, for her part, in a press statement, encouraged other rice-producing areas in Western Visayas to boost their yield.
She assured that “the DA is here to give interventions such as production support, training and extension services, provision of small-scale irrigation projects, farm machinery and facilities.”/epn