Filipino farmers would have higher income and yields through the use of certified inbred seeds which was allocated a P3 billion budget, according to Sen. Cynthia Villar.
Villar, chair of the Senate agriculture and food committee, said the P3 billion funding was given to the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) to teach farmers how to produce and propagate inbred rice seeds.
“At present, we only produce 4 metric tons of rice per hectare. With this inbred seeds, we will be able to bring up the harvest to 6 MT/ha, in the process, raising also the incomes of our rice farmers,” Villar said.
Villar added that the law provides local rice farmers with the opportunity to become seed growers engaged in trade because they will be taught to produce and propagate their own seeds.
“This will be one less expense for our farmers because they don’t have to buy seeds every cropping season. They will grow their own seeds and they can also sell them, ” she said.
Villar said the program under the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) which is separate from the Department of Agriculture’s program on hybrid rice.
The law also allocated P100 million to PhilRice to lead in the training of trainors who will teach farmers rice crop production and modern rice farming techniques.
Villar said Republic Act 11203 created the P10-billion RCEF funds. It was enacted to protect local farmers after the expiration of the quantitative restriction on rice importation.
The senator has asked newly-designated Agriculture (DA) Secretary William Dar to ensure the return to the RCEF of the P4 billion “unaccounted funds.”
Earlier, Villar filed Senate Resolution No. 39, seeking to account for the said amount released by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) last December since only P1 billion went to the accounts of the farmers.
She wants a clarification on the reported P5 million DBM release intended to help the rice farmers under the memorandum of understanding entered by the Agricultural Credit Policy Council (ACPC) with LBP and DBP.