The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
The Department of Agriculture is pushing for the use of organic fertilizer after decades of massive chemical fertilizer usage has degraded 80 percent of the country’s farm lands,
DA Operations Undersecretary Roger Navarro stressed the need to foster awareness that soil degradation comes from the abused use of inorganic fertilizer.
“Our estimate [for soil degradation] is we’re at least already there about 80 percent nationwide. That’s alarming,” Navarro told reporters during the World Soil Day 2024 observance on Thursday.
Deteriorated soil could not absorb inorganic fertilizer. Instead, it would either evaporate, thus contributing to greenhouse gases; or would leach out and contaminate waterways, he explained.
“Even if you’re going to put more bags [of inorganic fertilizer] in your soil, you won’t get any yield because it has already deteriorated,” Navarro said.
Rehabilitating the soil entails augmenting organic fertilizer, soil ameliorants and biofertilizers.
“We need to inform them that these are the protocols that we need to adopt in order for us to rebuild our soil and increase the yield of the land,” he said.
Navarro noted that the agency has started experimenting with a regenerative soil program for palay planting in 16 regions, including Cagayan Valley, Northern Mindanao, Soccsksargen and Bicol.
He said the program began with a maximum of 1 hectare, which they plan to increase to 100 hectares to see if the interventions are effective.
“If it’s a controlled environment in a small area, the results can really be good. But if you’re going to multiply it in a bigger area, there might be some kind of adjustment and calibration,” Navarro said.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) noted the importance of soil for the agriculture sector.
“Around 95 percent of our food comes from the soil, yet, alarmingly, 33 percent of soils worldwide are already degraded due to various threats and poor agricultural practices. This stark reality highlights how fragile and irreplaceable our soils are,” it said.
Earlier, the DA released guidelines on the establishment of a composting facility for biodegradable waste (CFBW) to improve soil health by using organic fertilizers.
DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. issued Memorandum Circular (MC) 31, which states that using compost could reduce farms’ and households’ dependence on chemical fertilizers and pesticides, which would cut production costs and increase returns on investment.
“This is one method to minimize groundwater pollution and restore soil fertility, thereby reducing the vulnerability of marginal farmers to the high cost of chemical fertilizers,” the MC read.
Rose de la Cruz