About 70 farmers in Zaragoza, Nueva Ecija are benefitting from a project funded by the Korea Partnership for Innovation of Agriculture (KOPIA). Through the project titled, “Development of the Pilot Village Project for the Establishment of Protective Cultivation and Postharvest Management of Vegetables,” members of the Buklod ng Nagkakaisang Magsasaka ng Batitang (BNMB) Farmers’ Association and Ugat-Uhay Farmers’ Association (UUFA) were trained on rice-based vegetable production. Following a recent week-long […]

Celebrating the station’s dedication to rice farmers in Southwestern Mindanao, PhilRice Midsayap commemorated its 35th founding anniversary on July 10-14. The week-long celebration featured a series of activities that highlighted the invaluable contribution of the station’s stakeholders to the continued success of its R4D initiatives and operations. Festivities commenced with a tree-planting activity and the launching of an arboretum within the compound, as well as an outreach and feeding program […]

To promote better health and nutrition in Samar, the Malusog Rice Program in Bicol joined the Nutrition Summit 2023 at Catbalogan City on July 13. Azryl May M. Jimenez, the station’s communication and stakeholder engagement officer shared Malusog rice’s role as a complementary solution to combat Vitamin A Deficiency (VAD) and malnutrition. “This new type of rice can provide 30-50% of the estimated average requirement of vitamin A, and can […]

To stay or stray? Social scientists based in the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) recently presented their significant findings on youth engagement and agriculture in the Philippines to the faculty and students of the University of the Philippines in Los Baños (UPLB). According to Teresa Joi P. de Leon, the paper’s main author, review of literature on the said topic from 2011 to 2021 showed that the chance is high […]

More than 6,000 farmers in CAR and Cagayan Valley have received certified seeds from the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund Program (RCEF) Seed Program for the wet season. Through Binhi e-Padala, farmers are pre-registered two months before seed distribution starts in September. Eligible farmers will only show their RCEF ID and claim their allotted seeds based on a set schedule. “For two minutes, we are already pre-registered! Choosing the variety to […]

The Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) Program has improved farmers’ access to information by making educational materials available in agri-supply stores. Pilot tested in Nueva Ecija, brochures on proper land preparation, recommended seeding rate for transplanting (40kg/ha) and direct-seeding (60-80kg/ha), right nutrient management, and good pest management were distributed in agri-stores in Science City of Muñoz and Guimba. Store owners expressed pride in their role as intermediaries in disseminating information […]

Nightmares of drought are still vivid in the mind of Nestor Mendoza. At midnight, they are wide awake, watching their fellow farmers from the downstream of the M’lang and Malasila Rivers Irrigation System (MMRIS) march up to avail of their right to farm water, even in darkness. “When rain is elusive, water supply is not enough for those who are at the tail end of the irrigation,” this member from […]

Mariano Marcos Memorial Hospital and Medical Center stocks up on emergency blood supply with 15 volunteers from the Philippine Rice Research Institute in Batac City, Ilocos Norte on June 26. The donated blood units will be allocated to patients who are undergoing surgeries, receiving cancer treatment, managing chronic illnesses, or recovering from traumatic injuries.

Drought has always been an intense foe of Faustino Medina, a rice farmer from Barangay Bantug, Science City of Muñoz, Nueva Ecija. This enemy always left him with low yield – a deep, painful wound for his pockets and their household table. His story represents most Philippine farming communities whose main staple and source of livelihood is rice. During an El Niño phenomenon, rice production is most challenging as it […]

The library of  Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) has been recognized as one of the champion partners of the Department of Science and Technology’s Science and Technology Information Institute’s STARBOOKS project.  The award was presented at a ceremony marking the 12th year of STARBOOKS, themed, “Pagbibigay Pugay sa mga Bida ng STARBOOKS!” Over the past year, the PhilRice Library has consistently contributed a wealth of science-based information resources to the […]