2,000 Pangasinan farmers receive agri-aid

• Source: http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?nid=11&rid=948204
• Tuesday, December 13, 2016

(PNA), LAP/LVM/LVMICUA/DMA

LINGAYEN, Pangasinan, Dec. 13 (PNA) -- Governor Amado Espino III on Tuesday distributed certified palay seeds and fertilizers to some 2,000 farmers from the third and fourth districts of Pangasinan as supplemental subsidized agricultural package from the provincial government.

“This is an augmentation to the earlier agri-relief given to our farmers with the help of Department of Agriculture and DA for those areas to be planted with rice this latter part of the year,” Gov. Espino said during the distribution at the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist in Sta. Barbara.

The distribution was part of the agro-industrial program of the provincial government, which Espino vowed to sustain to raise the quality of life of farmers.

He also bared that the provincial government is now preparing for the expected onset of the El Niño season next year through the continuous repair and construction of the province’s irrigation facilities and equipment.

Assistant Provincial Agriculturist Nestor Batalla explained that the supplemental agri-aid package aims to help the farmer beneficiaries increase rice yield to at least one metric ton per hectare during the dry season from October 2016 to March 2017.

This, he said, would help boost collective rice production in the third and fourth districts by 2,000 metric tons per hectare every cropping season.

Under the scheme, 50 percent of the cost of the agri-aid is shouldered by the provincial government while the other half is paid for by the farmers.

Comprising the agri-aid are one bag of certified palay seeds, two bags of urea fertilizer and two bags of 14-14-14 fertilizer, whose cost had been halved to Php 2,450 from the original market price of Php 4,900.

“The use of certified seeds and appropriate package of technology is one of the vital components in rice production which already resulted to increased rice yield in 23 municipalities,” Batalla added.

He said that this initiative enabled the province to bag the Rice Achievers Award from 2013-2015 and further ensured Pangasinan the hall of fame citation in April this year.

Pangasinan remains as the 3rd top rice-producing province in the Philippines after Nueva Ecija and Isabela.