Agriculture

The exhibit of the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) at the second floor lobby of the Philippine Senate turned into an amusing event of sorts as some senators,  their staff and visitors browsed through the banner standees, had a feel of the different rice varieties, watched in amazement the bike-like rice mill for brown rice and partook of samples of …

Agriculture Undersecretary for Rice Industry Development Leocadio S. Sebastian, in a commentary published by TransactionsNASTPhl, exhorted the science community to “think outside ourselves and ensure that our outputs result in societal outcomes for millions of farmers, fishers, stakeholders, and consumers. If our work supports societal outcomes and impacts on food security, attaining food security will not remain an uphill climb. …

At the Cashless Expo 2023 held at the World Trade Center, Director for agricultural digitalization Glenn Estrada of the National Rice Program, stressed the importance of electronic wallets to farming communities as catalysts for inclusive and sustainable agriculture. In a speech delivered for Agriculture Undersecretary for Rice Industry Development Leocadio Sebastian, Estrada said the expo is a remarkable confluence of …

For the first time in their lives Grade 10 (Junior) High School students of Salawang National High School in  Dasmarinas Cavite had a taste of what it is to grow and harvest palay right at the heart of Rizal Park in Manila, during the Ceremonial harvest as part of the annual National Rice Awareness Month (NRAM) every November. Undertaken jointly …

For  21 years, the Philippine Rice Research Institute has been managing a 300-square meter irrigated rice garden at the Luneta Park, where an annual ceremonial manual harvesting is done to educate students and urban dwellers on the science and art of rice cultivation in an urban setting. The ceremonial harvesting is part of the yearly celebration of the National Rice …

Farmers in Region 4-A (CALABARZON) are still enjoying high farmgate prices for palay at P16 to P19 per kilogram for fresh and P21 to P23 for dry despite delays in harvesting their ‘pahabol’ crop to recover from the losses of their wet season crop from typhoons and habagat in recent months. “Since 2019, these prices are the highest level yet …

As part of the National Rice Awareness Month activities, farmers of Nasugbu, Batangas participated in a Farm Walk in Sitio Manggahan, Barangay Putat, Nasugbu, Batangas, where the first-ever direct- seeded Malusog rice variety was planted by farmer, Gerardo Cabasis, in his 1.9 hectare palay farm.  Cabasis lost his entire wet season crop before July 10 to storms, strong winds and …

By Rose de la Cruz Advising Filipino consumers to buy rice directly from farmers is a logistics nightmare. It is easier said than done. This, as the Philippine Rice Research Institute, urged the consumers to buy milled rice stratight from the farmers to encoruage them to sell directly and make more money. The objective is noble and would transform farmers …

Alicia G. Ilaga, head of the BioTech program office of the Department of Agriculture and farmer-leader Mila Vibal Bognalbal of Barangay Joroan, Tiwi, Albay, were both conferred the 2023 Philippine Resilience Awards for women last October 12 at the PRA program held at the SMX Convention Center. They were among 10 final awardees from 44 semi-finalists. The convenors of the …

To kick off the traditional month-long celebration of the National Rice Awareness Month, the Department of Agriculture presented its digitalization strategy for the Masagana Rice Industry Development Program (MRIDP) to ensure that farmers are included in the formal financial system and their transaction with government become real-time, cashless, hassle-free and transparent with no delays that usually beset them in the …