Corn production in Negros Occ. up by 33%
BACOLOD CITY -- Corn production for the second quarter in the province posted an increase of 33% compared to the harvest of the same quarter last year.
Bureau of Agricultural Statistics (BAS) Chief Joely Cabarles said from 4,918 metric tons harvest in 2007, this increased to 6,545 metric tons, this year.
He attributed the increase to the 4.2% hike in the area planted from 4,875 hectares last year to 5,080 hectares in 2008.
Along with the increase of area planted to corn is the production yield per hectare that rose to 27.7%, he said.
More farmers turned to corn planting this year because the price per kilo of corn has significantly increased from P6.50 - P7.50 two years ago to P12-P14 today, Cabarles pointed out.
He also said the use of high yielding variety and better farming practices should also be considered for the higher harvest.
The province also posted a slight increase in rice production from 30, 241 metric tons in 2007 to 31, 271 metric tons during the second quarter.
Despite the increase, the province remains a rice deficit area. For the province to be self sufficient it needs to produce at least 520 metric tons of rice annually, he explained. Average production during the previous years is placed at more or less 425 metric tons.
A check at the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA) shows that a program is now being crafted towards the rice sufficiency of Negros Occ.
In the national level, the government is exerting efforts to be rice self-sufficient by year 2010. (PIA-LOL)