THE Department of Agriculture (DA) has approved a supplemental P82.5-million budget to increase rice production in Iloilo, one of the country’s biggest producers of the staple.
With the additional funds, the DA’s Region 6 office will be able to further support hybrid rice production in the province, expanding a program to an additional 16,500 hectares.
Region 6 comprises the provinces of Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Iloilo, Guimaras and Negros Occidental, with a total of 322,000 hectares for rice planting, or 14 percent of the country’s total rice production.
However, its yield is below the national average of 4.2 metric tons (MT) per hectare, amounting to just 3.4 MT in 2023. This is expected to improve with agricultural interventions such as higher-yield varieties, irrigation guarantees, proper nutrition, and management practices.
DA Region 6 director Dennis Arpia said that if weather conditions permited, additional land would be planted with hybrid rice varieties. While hybrid rice can yield up to 10 metric tons per hectare under ideal circumstances, he said just 5 metric tons of harvest would be fine given the unpredictable weather conditions.
While farmers in parts of the Western Visayas region have started planting for the dry season, others are just winding up their harvests due to delays caused by El Niño.
Be the first to comment