Typhoon Ulysses brought damages to tobacco seedbeds in Isabela, with an estimated cost of P4.6 million, based on the initial damage assessment of the NTA Isabela Branch Office as of November 16.
Affected farmers are 50 seedling growers in the province under the Improved Tobacco Seedling Production Project for crop year 2020-2021, including those with seedbeds intended for tobacco block farms. The seedlings, submerged in floods during the onslaught of the typhoon in Northern Luzon on November 12, would have covered requirements for 512 hectares of tobacco farm.
The Operations Unit of NTA Isabela started conducting the ocular inspection and damage assessment on TCGS projects in affected areas on November 16. Ninety percent of seedbeds inspected were totally damaged, according to the report.
In Cagayan, the flooding also damaged 43 seedbeds intended for tobacco block farms. According to Deputy Administrator for Operations Dr. Roberto R. Bonoan, NTA will provide affected farmers in Region 2 with certified seeds for re-sowing, as a remedial measure. Farmers are expected to start transplanting the seedlings in early January.
Isabela and Cagayan are two of the most affected provinces, with nearly P4 billion worth of damage to the country’s agriculture sector, according to the Department of Agriculture’s (DA) Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (DRRM).In photos: Perpetuo Dalloran, TPRO III, and his team from NTA Isabela conducted ocular inspection/damage assessment on seedbed status in Reina Mercedes, Roxas, and Quezon in Isabela on November 17.