Farmers urged to shift to organic farming

The substantial cut in the prices of fertilizer brought about by the continued decline in the price of crude oil in the world market is temporary and not a lasting solution to the looming rice crisis.

Efren Moncupa, lead convenor of Go Organic! Philippines, warned that if the price of crude oil goes up, fertilizer prices and other farm inputs will also increase.

“Oil is a political commodity, and therefore unstable. The price is dependent on many factors, other than the supply and demand. There’s no assurance that fertilizer prices will remain low forever,” he said.

Moncupa said organic farming offers a lasting solution to the problem brought about by excessive use of petrochemical-based farm inputs such as fertilizer and pesticides.

“Organic farming cures all the ills brought about by excessive use of fertilizer and pesticides,” he said. 

Go Organic! Philippines through its affiliates, the Philippine Rural Reconstruction Movement (PRRM) and the La Liga Policy Institute (La Liga), are taking the lead in implementing Phase I of the Organic FIELDS Support Program (OPSF) in partnership with the Department of Agriculture through the Bureau of Soils and Water Management (BSWM). The group is now aggressively promoting organic farming.

FIELDS or Fertilizer, Irrigation and other rural infrastructure like farm-to-market roads, Education and extension work, Loans, dryers and other post-harvest facilities, and seeds are the main components of the DA’s thrust to achieve the rice self-sufficiency for the country.