The Philippine and Papua New Guinea (PNG) governments are collaborating to beef up their agriculture industry particularly their rice production system. A joint declaration to effect this partnership was signed by Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol and PNG Agriculture Minister Benny Allen with PH President Rodrigo Duterte and PNG Prime Minister Peter O’neill serving as witnesses at the Malacañang Palace, May 6. According to Piñol, the declaration stipulates that both countries […]

The Department of Agriculture through the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) has technologies in place to help lessen the impact of TRAIN law to the rice farmers. Dr. Sailila E. Abdula, PhilRice executive director, said yield-enhancing technologies such as machines, water management, and varieties are easily available for the rice growers to offset the P0.50 increase in the production cost of pump-dependent farmers. TRAIN or Tax Reform for Acceleration and […]

Public hybrid rice will soon be easily available for Palawan farmers following a recent intensive training attended by the province’s agricultural workers. Marlon Montero, rice program project officer in Palawan, said that the province’s hybrid rice seeds were sourced out in other regions including Davao. “There is a risk in procuring the seeds away from Palawan knowing that this can negatively affect the germination rate. With our current efforts, we […]

PhilRice soil scientists and researchers shone with three best paper awards at the 21st Philippine Society of Soil Science and Technology (PSSST) Annual Meeting and Scientific Conference held in Davao City, May 2-5. The event highlighted innovations in soil science for improved ecosystem. Under the Senior Category, Jayvee A. Cruz, Josef Mikhail R. Bautista, Editha V. Evangelista, Alexandra R. Agpaoa, Jonathan M. Niones, Trinidad C. Fernando, Roel R. Suralta, and […]

To help Bicolano farmers become more climate resilient, the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) promotes the use of quality seeds in the recent 2018 Lakbay Palay Dry Season held at PhilRice Bicol, Ligao City, Albay. Dr. Jonathan Niones, head of PhilRice Genetics Resources Division, encouraged seeds growers to increase their production of quality seeds so that access to these seeds is improved. With the region’s vulnerability to typhoons, flood, and […]

An analysis tool called the Rice Integrative Genomics Workbench in Galaxy (RIGby) will be released soon to hasten breeding of stress-tolerant rice varieties. A ‘swiss knife’ of tools for bioinformatics, Dr. Reynante L. Ordonio, a PhilRice biotechnology expert, said RIGBy will help generate genomic data needed in developing new rice varieties that are resistant to pests and diseases and can withstand drought, flood, low temperature, and salinity. Ordonio argues that […]

The Philippine Rice Research Institute was recently recognized by the Intellectual Property (IP) Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) for having the most number of patents granted to a government institution in the past 20 years. “Gawad Yamang Isip: Special Awards” was given to PhilRice during Intellectual Property Convergence 2018 held in Makati City, April 26. The said award is usually given to private and public institutions with record-breaking achievements in […]

Engineers and researchers from the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) bagged the major awards at the 29th Philippine Agricultural Engineering Week, 15th International Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Conference and Exhibition, and 68th Philippine Society of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineers (PSABE) Annual National Convention held in Davao City, April 28. The team of Engr. Kristine S. Pascual from the Rice Engineering and Mechanization Division won the first place award under the […]

The Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) is helping create a better agriculture industry through communication support to the policy-makers. Myriam G. Layaoen, lead of the Science-Based Policies in Advancing Rice Communities (SPARC) program, said that the Institute is assisting policy makers in crafting policies through information materials launched on April 27 in the Department of Agriculture (DA) compound, Quezon City. “These materials published data derived from PhilRice-conducted studies across the […]

The Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) is developing an Android application from a four-stripped “ruler” called Leaf Color Chart (LCC), which is used in assessing nitrogen status of the rice plant. The handy diagnostic tool, which identifies the nutrient deficiency through colors ranging from yellow green to dark green, helps farmers save one to two sacks of nitrogen in every hectare. Nitrogen is an essential rice plant nutrient for growth […]