Negros Occidental farmers urged to insure crops

BACOLOD CITY, Philippines  — The farmers in Negros Occidental were urged to enroll in crop insurance to mitigate the effects of El Niño in the coming months.

Senior Agriculturist II Dina Genzola of the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist said farmers should enroll in the insurance program of the provincial government to insure their rice, corn and high-value crops.

“The insurance can help farmers mitigate the impact of El Niño in case it hits their crops. It will also help them financially, especially for the next cropping season,” Genzola said.

Rice farmers could get at least P17,680 for every hectare of crop damaged by pests or calamity should they enroll in the insurance program.

The provincial government pays P500 of the of P840 insurance premium for every cropping season while the farmers pay the remaining amount.

As of yesterday, 13,684 farmers in the province have already enrolled in the crop insurance, which covered 13,214,854 hectares of agricultural land.

At least P28,711,188.05 insurance claims have been released since the program started in 2011.

The El Niño phenomenon is expected to last until the last quarter of this year and the first few months of next year.  (FREEMAN)