DA extends more support to farmers

MANILA, Philippines - This is in connection with the paid advertisement published in the March 9, 2009 issue of the Philippine STAR about the complaints of some farmers in Central Luzon on their SL-8H hybrid rice plants.

Allow us to clarify matters pertaining to the hybrid rice commercialization program (HRCP) and the GMA Rice Program of the Department of Agriculture (DA).

In the drive towards national self-sufficiency for rice, there are many factors and programs that must come together. The use of quality seeds is one of them. This is the reason why the DA advocates and supports the use of hybrid and inbred rice certified seeds (CS). With correct water management, sufficient input application, use of quality seeds and favorable weather, farmers can see their yields shoot-up by 30%-100%, hence further raising their incomes.

In advocating the use of CS and hybrid seeds, the DA never recommends a particular brand or seed grower. “Farmer’s choice” is our policy at the DA, which means it is up to each beneficiary to choose the kind of CS or hybrid seed varieties he wants to use. This is our policy even in our fertilizer support program, so that while we last year handed out discount coupons to farmers, which they used to purchase fertilizer at cheaper rates, these beneficiaries themselves selected the particular brands or types that they used in their farms.

In the case of hybrid rice seeds, last year’s subsidy of P1,500 per hectare was good for all the recommended hybrid rice varieties in the country. The subsidy on the cost of hybrid rice seeds was not only for the seeds produced by the SL Agritech Corporation, which was mentioned in the paid ad but for all other HRCP players as well. These other HRCP players include the Bayer CropScience, the Bioseed Research Philippines, the Syngenta Philippines, the HyRice Corporation, and the cooperatives that are producing the public sector hybrids.

Rice seeds sold locally are not certified for sale unless they go through four planting seasons or two years of testing. Approval for domestic seed sales are made by the National Seed Industry Council, which is composed of technical representatives from the DA, Bureau of Plant Industry, Philippine Rice Research Institute, University of the Philippines Los Baños, Philippine Seed Industry Association, National Onion Growers Cooperative Marketing Association, Philippine Fruit Association, and Philippine Council for Agriculture, Forestry and Natural Resources Research and Development.

As regards the alleged abnormal growth performance of the SL-8H variety produced by SL Agritech Corp., the DA, in coordination with the concerned local government units, had dispatched quick response teams to immediately aid and respond to the concerns of the affected farmers. These teams will continue to extend technical assistance to farmers and monitor the incident until harvest season to help ensure high yields.

Last month, Secretary Arthur Yap conducted an administrative hearing on this hybrid seed issue attended by over 80 farmers from Cabanatuan City and five Nueva Ecija municipalities — Llanera, Santa Rosa, San Isidro, Gapan, and Zaragoza — whose hybrid crops have been affected by the recent cold spell and strong winds.

Testimonies given by the farmers during that DA hearing showed that only a small percentage of hybrid rice farmers were actually affected, and that they incurred production losses because they had, out of panic, plowed under their hybrid crops and planted new varieties instead of heeding the advice of the DA-led technical teams for them to just let their hybrid crops grow and continue applying the appropriate culture management practices. Many of the farmers who attended that hearing said that their crops eventually recovered when they had chosen to follow the advice of the DA technicians instead of plowing under their standing hybrid crops.

A subsequent survey conducted by the DA’s Regional Field Unit in Central Luzon — on orders of Secretary Yap — buttressed the farmers’ testimonies as field data gathered by Regional Executive Director Redentor Gatus showed that only 0.5% of palay fields planted to hybrid seeds were actually affected, and that those who suffered production losses were the farmers who had plowed under their hybrid crops out of panic.

Nonetheless, Secretary Yap instructed the DA to give priority to the production loans being availed by the affected farmers. He had also instructed the BPI and the PhilRice to conduct “growth tests” or genetic tests on the SL-8H hybrid seeds to determine this variety’s actual performance in the field, using the facilities of the International Rice Research Institute in Los Baños, Laguna. Also, the BPI is conducting growth tests in Pangasinan to monitor the actual growth of this variety from planting to harvest time. —  JESUS EMMANUEL M. PARAS, Undersecretary for Operations, Department of Agriculture