With good results from the initial sites, La Union will soon establish a 24-ha technology demonstration site dubbed as PalaySikatan under the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) Seed Program.
To be managed by Philippine Rice Research Institute in Batac City, Ilocos Norte, four towns will showcase the performance of NSIC Rc 510, Rc 508, Rc 480, Rc 160, Rc 402, Rc 222, and Rc 216. These towns include Sudipen, Aringay, Bauang, and Tubao.
“These varieties are either national, regional recommendations, or newly-released. We hope that farmers can see for themselves which inbred varieties are best suited in their area. We also promote the use of certified seeds as it can increase rice yield by 10%,” Bethzaida Catudan, PhilRice Batac RCEF coordinator, said.
According to Catudan, harvests of La Union farmer-cooperators who have completed their program engagement and with sufficient water irrigation during the cropping season significantly increased from 4.40t/ha to 6.48t/ha in the wet season and 6.47t/ha in dry season.
“With these promising results, we expect that the farmer-cooperators will continue to use the technologies they learned in the techno demo. They are also our partners in reaching out to more farmers,” Catudan added.
Among the technologies to be showcased in the 24-ha techno demo site include machines for crop establishment and harvesting and nutrient management practices such as the use of Minus-one-element Technique (MOET) in analyzing soil’s nutrient deficiencies and determining the appropriate fertilizers to apply.
Farmer-cooperator Glen Balanag from Aringay said he is willing to share with his fellow farmers the technologies and practices that he will learn in the PalaySikatan techno demo.
“I’m committed to explaining the benefits of integrating these new technologies and rice varieties to my fellow farmers for us all to learn,” Balanag said.
Meanwhile, San Gabriel Mayor Lany Carbonell said the techno demo is necessary in coping with the effects of climate change.
“We hope that farmers will become aware of the suitable rice varieties, which can help them adapt to climate change,” she said.
The RCEF Seed Program is a component of Republic Act 11203 or Rice Tariffication Law, which allocates P3 billion in funds every year to develop, propagate, and promote high-quality inbred rice seeds to help improve the competitiveness of Filipino rice farmers.
PhilRice leads its implementation, and is the government’s lead agency on rice research and development. The local government units and lawmakers assist in its implementation.
