Wednesday, August 22, 2007 DA taps 15T hectares of farmlands to augment Luzon's rice supply By Allen V. Estabillo Of Sun.Star General Santos
GENERAL SANTOS CITY -- The Department of Agriculture (DA) has tapped at least 15,000 hectares of palay farmlands in Southwestern Mindanao to help augment the dwindling rice supplies in Metro Manila and several parts of Luzon that were earlier hit by a dry spell.
Southwestern Mindanao Regional Director Abusama Alid said in a statement that such move is part of the quick turn-around (QTA) strategy formulated by DA central office to help offset the impact of the dry spell that destroyed at least 92,000 hectares of rice-producing farmlands in Luzon.
As part of the QTA strategy's interventions, Alid said they will assist in the planting of 15,000 hectares of palay in several areas of the region until the end of September.
The region covers the cities of General Santos, Koronadal, Kidapawan, Cotabato, Tacurong and the provinces of South Cotabato , Sarangani, Sultan Kudarat, and Cotabato.
Alid said they are set to conduct a massive distribution of certified palay seeds to help boost the harvests in areas that would covered by the initiative.
He said they will offer the certified palay seeds to farmers and local government units through its 50-50 scheme.
Under such scheme, farmers may purchase certified palay seeds at half its retail price or a discount of 50 percent. The remaining 50 percent will be borne by the department.
Agriculture Sec. Arthur Yap earlier assured residents of Metro Manila and Luzon not to worry about a shortage of rice supplies since they could source the area's needs from the rice-producing areas in Visayas and Mindanao.
Aside from Southwestern Mindanao, DA plans to tap palay harvests from Southeastern Mindanao and Panay island, the rice granary of Visayas.
Aside from the distribution of certified palay seeds, DA plans to set up additional small water-impounding projects and other irrigation facilities as well as seeds for short-gestating crops like vegetables.
Alid said the palay production areas in the region are expected to begin their harvests next month and will peak until the end of the year.
The region, which has more than 200,000 hectares of palay farmlands, is one of the top producers of palay in Mindanao, which produces 23 percent of the national output.
During the first quarter of the year, the region was the number palay producer in Mindanao with a volume harvest of 317,000 metric tons.
