by Neyo E. Valdez
TOBACCO contract growers received rice production assistance worth P49.5-million under the agency’s Integrated Farming and Other Income-Generating Activities Program (IFOIGAP), and in line with the Rice Resiliency Project of the Department of
Agriculture.
NTA through its Branch Offices released early in June the amount for the Rice Wet Season Project for CY 2020 to 3,537 tobacco-rice farmers of major tobacco-producing areas in the Ilocos Provinces, La Union, Pangasinan, Abra, Cagayan, and Isabela.
According to Deputy Administrator for Operations Dr. Roberto R. Bonoan, the agency implemented the inbred rice production in rainfed areas, with tobacco as preceding crop, to augment the income of tobacco-rice farmers, by increasing their yield to at least 5,000 kilos per hectare.
The rice production assistance, at P25,000 per hectare with 40% subsidy, will cover the amount to purchase certified seeds, tractor/animal rental for land preparation, fuel for irrigation, and fertilizers.
According to Bonoan, the agency has increased the program coverage from 2,371 last year to 2,829 hectares this crop year and an additional 533 farmers to last year’s 3,004 beneficiaries, as part of its intervention and activities on food production.
“We have a high yield and productivity in our rice production program, since we started implementing the tobacco off-season project in 1999, and we expect to sustain our efficiency and boost production in support of Secretary William Dar’s food sufficiency drive,” he said.
The agency’s extension workers, who are also equipped with technical know-how on rice production, provide the farmers technical and marketing assistance.
“To ensure a ready market of their harvest, NTA has made an arrangement with the National Food Authority NFA in the locality to be the market outlet,” he added.
In addition to expanded rice production, Bonoan has also reported to Secretary Dar the other interventions of NTA for tobacco-rice farmers during the pandemic: the P13.5-million Emergency Cash Assistance (ECA) to 6,668 tobacco contract growers, the P10-million Gulayan at Manukan Sa Barangay Project, and the Distribution of Free Vegetable Seeds worth P3.3 million to registered tobacco growers.
