50% subsidy program for certified seeds still on, says Iloilo agri chief
Fifty percent of the price of certified seeds at P1,200 per sack will be subsidized for farmers who are enlisted in their respective municipal masterlists.
This was disclosed by Dr. Ildefonso Toledo of the Iloilo Provincial Agriculture Office in a PIA interview as he stressed to start the cropping season right with the use of certified seeds.
Studies show that the use of certified seeds contributes 10% to production growth thus, the use of these high quality seeds is one of the interventions the rice self-sufficiency program promotes to help farmers improve their productivity toward sufficient yield levels.
“Seed is one of the most key components governing the productivity of the crop,” Toledo said.
The Iloilo Provincial Agriculture chief hopes that Ilonggo farmers would continue to make the habit of using certified seeds in order to achieve higher production level and increase their earnings.
A farmer can only pay P600 for a sack of certified seeds worth P1,200.00 because of the government’s 50 percent subsidized cost for the certified seeds.
“Our farmers should have a ready stocks of certified seeds so that when the wet season comes, they could plant immediately,” Toledo said.
Toledo also noted the natural rainfall experienced in Iloilo last Tuesday and Wednesday which he hopes could be the signal of the coming rainy season.
He urged farmers to also monitor the weather condition before they start planting rice because it might affect their productivity.
The Iloilo province has 127,000 hectares of riceland. Of this figure 55,000 hectares are irrigated while 71,000 hectares are rainfed. (PIA6/T.Villavert)
