published October 21, 2010 in BusinessWorld
TACLOBAN CITY -- The Agriculture department has drafted measures to ensure that farmers continue to use high-yielding rice varieties despite the planned removal of seed subsidy in 2012.
Leo P. Cañeda, regional executive director of the Department of Agriculture (DA) in Eastern Visayas, said these measures include the promotion of credit access especially among small farmers’ cooperatives, massive public investment in pre-production and post-harvest facilities, strengthened delivery of extension support through local government units, and development of infrastructure support like irrigation and farm-to-market roads.
"We must prepare ourselves for that eventuality. That will entail a lot of advocacy effort," Mr. Cañeda told BusinessWorld.
He said many farmers are currently dependent on government subsidies in order for them to plant certified and hybrid seeds.
"We will see how much the farmers have responded to the new technologies because if indeed it has been proven that there’s a lot to be gained in terms of productivity by shifting to the use of quality seeds then even without the subsidy, the farmers will continue to adopt the technology," Mr. Cañeda said.
Higher yields
Traditional seeds yield only 3.4 metric tons (MT) of palay per hectare while hybrid seeds and certified seeds produce 6.5 MT and 3.4 MT of palay in a hectare, respectively.
Under the national government’s subsidy program, a farmer pays P3,000 per bag of hybrid rice seeds while the government shoulders the balance of P1,000. The DA also provides free fertilizer during some planting seasons and subsidizes crop insurance premium contributions.
In the case of certified seeds, the price per bag is P1,200. The government pays half of the cost. In some areas in Eastern Visayas, local government units also provide counterpart subsidies.
"There are some local government units providing counterpart subsidy, meaning they further split the [amount to be paid by] the farmer. The farmer will have to shell out only P300 for a bag of certified seeds," Mr. Cañeda added.
The national government has already taken out seed subsidies in six regions that are not covered by the Rapid Seed Supply Financing Program. This program will expire in November 2011.
"That will be the final reckoning point. Would they still continue using quality seeds even without the subsidy? That’s a question to be asked by 2012," Mr. Cañeda said.
"If indeed the technology works in their favor [when it comes to] increasing output and farmers’ income, there will be no further need for the seed subsidy. We are moving in that direction," he added.
He said they have observed that some farmers have been buying high-yielding seeds on their own, especially when the supply from the Agriculture office is delayed.
"That would explain why despite the relatively low certified seeds distribution, our productivity still went up because some farmers opted to buy on their own," Mr. Cañeda said.
For the May to October 2010 planting period, the government targets 8,500 farmers planting hybrid seeds, or 17% of the total number of farmers cultivating irrigated rice farms in the region.
The target for certified seeds planting is 50,000 hectares. This is expected to increase to 84,000 hectares in the next planting season. (Sarwell Q. Meniano)
