Romeo Ferrer, 65, and Florante De Luna, 50, from Gumaca, Quezon used to spend a lot of time and money to transplant the one-hectare land they each owned. But when they began using mechanical transplanters, things started to change for the better. They have been religiously following the recommended practices and technologies they learned through their engagement as farmer-cooperators of the PalaySikatan technology demonstration last 2021 wet season. They are […]

Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) of the Department of Agriculture – the country’s lead agency of rice research and development, was introduced in an international market during a recent three-day online sale spearheaded by the ASEAN Coordinating Committee on E-commerce. Chona Narvadez, PhilRice sales and promotions supervisor, said that the “ASEAN online sale has strengthened the institute’s reputation as a legitimate e-commerce merchant in the Philippines.” In the region-wide activity, […]

Planetary health diet or the consumption of more plant and less meat for better human and planetary health, was underscored in a webinar hosted by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) in celebration of this year’s nutrition month. Dr. Renzo R. Guinto, director of the Planetary and Global Health Program of St. Luke’s Medical Center, explained that overconsumption of red meat raises cancer risks, and its production contributes to around […]

Three years after its maiden implementation, more than 10 million bags of certified seeds were distributed to about one million farmers from the 42 target provinces under the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF). Estimates also show that rice areas planted with RCEF seeds reach 1.5 million hectares yearly. As of July, 1.57 million bags were distributed to more than 630,000 farmers in 731 cities and municipalities, with an estimated area […]

With the importance of high-quality seed and its accessibility in achieving rice sufficiency, Department of Agriculture (DA) recently launched an information system that will hasten rice seed-related transactions and processes. The system, developed by Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) and Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), include production planning, field data collection, documentation, and geotagging; monitoring, inventory, and distribution of seed reserve; seed source tracing; application and approval of accreditation and […]

The Philippine Rice Research Institute – Batac has established nine new technology demonstration sites in Region 1 this wet season 2022 under the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Seed Program. Dubbed PalaySikatan, the technology demonstration project uses research-based rice production technologies and on-farm performance of mechanically established inbred rice varieties. In partnership with the local government units of Tagudin, Salcedo and Quirino in Ilocos Sur and San Gabriel and Balaoan in La […]

Farmers in two Aklan towns are grateful as they can now receive their seeds faster and easier through Binhi e-Padala, a digital voucher system used in distributing free certified inbred rice seeds from the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) – Seed Program. Through the Department of Agriculture – Philippine Rice Research Institute (DA-PhilRice) in Negros, Binhi e-Padala was recently launched in the towns of Ibajay and Makato. NSIC Rc 216 […]

Rice farmers in Masbate City, Masbate; Calbayog City, Samar; and Santa Maria, Laguna expressed willingness to apply combination of organic and inorganic fertilizer during the launch of the “Abonong Swak! Swak sa Budget! Swak sa Palay!” campaign by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) together with the Bureau of Soil and Water Management (BSWM). The “Abonong Swak” campaign is an initiative of the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund – Rice Extension […]

The local government of Supiden, La Union has distributed free certified inbred seeds from the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) to 17 remote villages.  Zeny Corpuz, municipal agriculturist, said that they brought the seeds to the farmers to help them further save on resources going to the municipal hall to receive the rice seeds. “Farmers in these areas pay expensive fares to reach the town. We decided to help them […]

The use of Minus-One Element Technique (MOET), a farmer-friendly and quick soil analysis kit, added 20 cavans (62kg/cavan) to the harvest of a farmer in Bislig City, Surigao del Sur. Ryan F. Alvar usually harvests 35 cavans (62kg/cavan) from his 0.8-ha field. When he applied his learnings on the use of MOET from the PalaySikatan, a technology demonstration farm established by DA-PhilRice Agusan under the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF)-Seed […]