RECENT flash floods brought about by the Southwest Monsoon or “habagat” left total production losses worth about P5.4 million to the agriculture sector of Negros Occidental.
Final report of the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA) covering the period of July 31 to August 16, 2018 showed that 287 farmers in 12 barangays of Hinigaran town were affected by the calamity.
In terms of area, the total amount of production losses accounts for almost 290-hectare farms of rice, corn, and high-value commercial crops (HVCC) in the southern Negros Occidental locality.
OPA further reported that the rice sector incurred the biggest amount of damage, almost P4.8 million.
The figure comprises 264 farmers with combined rice areas of about 286 hectares.
“Affected farms are mostly in the seedling stage,” it said, adding that other affected rice areas are in seedling, vegetative, reproductive and ripening stages.
For HVCC, 12 farmers with an area of 3.20 hectares incurred total production losses of P638,500.
A corn farmer, meanwhile, with 0.20-hectare farm was reported to have P3,000 worth of losses.
OPA has been urging local farmers to insure their crops by enrolling in Negros First Universal Crop Insurance Program (NFUCIP), which is in partnership with the Philippine Crop Insurance Corp. (PCIC).
Unlike of the previous years, the Provincial Government now shoulders the full enrollment premium per cropping season of P840.
Aside from the P17,000 claims per hectare of damaged farms which can be availed by enrolled farmers, they are also entitled to P50,000 premium worth of life insurance.