Behind other Region 6 provinces Iloilo lags in organic agriculture

ILOILO CITY, Philippines – Iloilo is known as an agricultural province and dubbed as the “rice granary of the Visayas” for being the top producer of rice in Western Visayas.

The province’s vast farmlands and rich soil make it ideal for growing rice, fruits and vegetables, but agriculture officials said that attendant to the farmers’ aim to increase production is the threat of environment and soil degradation to the province.

These threats have been the reason why government and the private sector have tried to introduce organic agriculture in Iloilo.

Department of Agriculture-6 executive director Larry Nacionales however said only a few farmers here practice organic agriculture despite the campaign. “It seems popular now but in terms of practice, we are still behind other provinces. Negros is even more advanced than Panay,” he said.

The shift to organic farming has started but in a slow process because farmers have to combine yet conventional and organic method, said Nacionales.

Some farmers have also organized a group, Panay Organic Farmers Association, that practices organic agriculture and help promote its use to other farmers.

“Negros is more advanced than us because they already have an ordinance pushing for the use of organic farming among the farmers in their area,” he said.

Nacionales said the DA and local government officials have been working to promote organic agriculture, informing and encouraging farmers to adapt it, based on Republic Act 10068 or the Organic Act of 2010.

Authorities have been facing a critical situation however, because many farmers seemed reluctant to adapt the organic farming method. “We can’t avoid resistance (from them) because they are already used to conventional farming, which is easier for them with higher output than organic agriculture.

Assistant director Teodoro Solsoloy, of the Bureau of Agricultural Research, countered that low productivity is only during the first few years of organic farming, but “once the soil becomes sustainable after using organic products, the farmers will see increased and stable yield.”

Nacionales said the DA have continued to convince the farmers by introducing to them the benefits they could get from organic agriculture.

“We are telling them that organic farming is not only for the environment but also for economic aspect because they can save in organic products. Using the conventional method of farming is expensive because of the high cost of pesticides and fertilizers unlike organic products that are already available there in their farms,” he added.

Solsoloy said organic agriculture can restore the lost soil nutrients and the ecology. He added that this year the national government allocated P900 million for organic agriculture. Of the amount, P150 million was set aside for research and development of organic farming.

Financial assistance would also be provided to farmers who decide to shift to organic agriculture, after submitting project proposal to the DA for funding.