By Estanislao Albano, Jr.
(Note: With the passage of the Rice Tarrification Law opening up the country to cheaper rice from abroad, eyed as one of the best means for our rice farmers to cope with the lower prices of their produce is to shift to hybrid rice technology due to the higher yield. Since I will be writing about the effort to promote hybrid rice among local farmers in future issues of this paper, let me share this article written in 2013 as backgrounder.)
(Last of two parts)
In the context of the history of F1 production in the Tabuk Valley, the proven capability of Barnigan to consistently produce good quality F1 shows that it could be done after all when one puts his mind to it. It can be recalled that the integrity and future of the incipient F1 industry here specifically those of farmer-partners of the Department of Agriculture (DA) was gravely compromised by a combination of sloppiness and greed of many local F1 producers. Apart from grossly impure seeds traced to careless rouguing practices and likewise inadequate barriers to isolate the crop from pollination with adjoining crops, some misguided seed growers resorted to adulterating their seeds in an effort to increase their profits from the sale of their seeds to the government. The malpractices ruined the reputation of the F1 from the valley which were produced under the government’s hybrid rice program.
During the mid2000s, many Tabuk Valley farmers were victimized when the F1 seeds produced by local producers they planted had very low germination percentage or were found as the crop grew that the seeds were mixed with inbred varieties. Somehow the malpractice of some local government F1 farmer cooperators affected the then drive of the government to have all farmers shift to hybrid varieties because the victim farmers were discouraged from planting hybrid rice due to their sad experience.
The lack of intentions and inability of government F1 farmer cooperators in the Tabuk Valley to produce quality seeds was one of the main factors which made rice hybridization in the locality fail. It is rather sad because hybridization looked within reach in the mid 2000s what with almost half the 10,000 hectares of farmlands already planted to hybrid rice varieties. But alas, starting 2006, the number of hectares planted to A x R went on a stiff and steady decline until there were only a handful of farmers planting F1 and only Barnigan has been left of the more than 200 F1 producers.
It is rather sad that hybrid rice technology failed to take deep roots in the Tabuk Valley considering the facts that the locality is touted to be one of the best spots in the country to grow hybrid rice in and also that hybrid rice out-yields traditional rice varieties by a wide margin and was hailed as the secret of attaining rice sufficiency in the country. We say “was” because the current administration is not promoting hybrid rice as aggressively as the previous administration and has in fact discontinued the subsidy for it but whether or not that is a mistake is another story.
Let’s go back to the one and only F1 producer in the Tabuk Valley. He maintains that despite the labor and time he pours into his crop, the effort is still worth it. He does not want to give the details and only assured that he gains more from the activity than by producing inbred seeds or commercial rice.
Needless to say, planting hybrid rice seeds is also worth it otherwise, farmers would not be buying the seeds of Barnigan. A faithful client of Barnigan who does not want to be named harvested an average of 258 cavans per hectare in his three-hectare farm three years ago so since then he has been planting hybrid rice. He also debunks the common practice of not planting hybrid rice during the wet season because the variety is said to be susceptible to diseases which are prevalent during the wet season. He says that it may be true that hybrid rice is attacked by diseases during the wet season but then so are other varieties.
Coincidentally, Barnigan who used to plant A x R only during the dry cropping considering that due to the weather, it is too risky to produce F1 during the rainy season, last year he also planted during the wet season taking advantage of the good weather then. He said that now that he is planting twice year, just in case there will be unsold seeds from the summer harvest it being that not many farmers plant hybrid rice during the wet season, he would stock it and sell in December in time for the dry cropping of the following year. Barnigan informed that when stock for some months, the germination level of F1 is enhanced. He will treat the seeds so that they will not be infested by weevil.
Barnigan has encountered some problems. One is the availability of A line – the female parent. With the withdrawal of government subsidy for farmers who wish to plant hybrid rice seeds, planting materials have become scarce Barnigan said that he failed to plant A x R in the summer of 2011 because despite his best efforts, he was unable to procure A line. The Philrice had none. Someone tipped him that a farmer in Pangasinan is selling A line for the M1 but he could not get the contact number soon enough so he gave up and planted inbred rice instead.
And of course, there is the unpredictable weather. Hybrid seed production is more vulnerable to the changes in the weather because just a mild rain during the flowering stage could affect the pollination process and eventually, the productivity of the crop. Harvesting the seeds also requires good weather as any excess moisture would compromise the germination capacity of the seeds. As a hybrid seed producer, he had already experienced crop failures on account of the weather but is thankful that during the past four seasons, the heavens had cooperated.
As for the human factors that almost smothered to death the promising A x R industry in the Tabuk Valley specifically greed, indolence and sloppiness, Barnigan has no problem with them. Why, he himself does the soaking and seeding of F1 for buyers who still do not know the procedures – for free. According to him, this is one means of promoting his product. Brilliant and commendable, isn’t it?**
