The graduate If you thought people of age are stubborn and not open to modern ideas, meet Nanay Cecilia F. Tagobador, 54-year-old farmer from Bago City, Negros Occidental. She is one of the 125 farmers who graduated from the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) Farmer Field School facilitated by MBA Forest Technical School Inc. under the auspices of the RCEF Extension program. “We learned that spraying pesticide should not be […]

Following success in establishing a farmers’ cooperative in Murcia, Negros Occidental, Department of Agriculture-Philippine Rice Research Institute (DA-PhilRice) based here is expanding its assistance on business entrepreneurship to two municipalities. Anileen Pajarillo, station lead of Rice Business Innovation System (RiceBIS) program, said that about 200 farmers in San Carlos City, Negros Occidental and Canalon City, Negros Oriental are attending trainings on rice production and agri-enterprise following strict health protocol. According […]

Farmers in Murcia, Negros Occidental started to update their knowledge on rice farming with the recent launching of PalayAralan, an informal learning series, in Brgy. Damsite. Conducted by Department of Agriculture-Philippine Rice Research Institute (DA-PhilRice), 26 farmers under the RiceBIS Agrarian Reform Cooperative learned about managing pests and diseases. According to Jose Arnel Cordova, science research specialist, rice production in the area is quite low due to bacterial leaf blight […]

Manuel B. Espino, 47, of  Bago City, Negros Occidental, has been farming for 10 years when he tried two varieties — one recommended by the station for national planting, and the other location-specific for Western Visayas. With proper rice farming technologies, he harvested 120 bags (46kg per bag) of NSIC Rc 160, up by 10-20% from his usual haul. PSB Rc 10, recommended for their region, showed resistance against fungal […]