Gov. Pineda and DA Sec. Alcala in a recent distribution of farm trucks to farmers in San Luis, Pampanga.
CITY OF SAN FERNANDO – Pampanga Gov. Lilia Pineda has joined farmers and fisherfolk in urging the national government to reduce prices of fertilizers and other farm inputs.
Pineda is expected to personally relay her appeal to Agriculture Sec. Proceso Alcala who will attend a Department of Agriculture (DA) program at the Clark Freeport in Pampanga on Wednesday (May 16).
Pineda expressed optimism saying “the DA and other concerned government agencies will seriously consider the appeal of groups of local farmers and fisher folk as this would be beneficial to the economic and agricultural development of the province and the entire country as well.”
Nestor Garcia of the Pampanga Agriculture and Fishery Council (PAFC) and Jose Paguinto of Candaba Municipal Agriculture and Fishery Council (MFAC) earlier asked Pineda to help them in persuading the government to lower the prices of farm inputs.
They said the prices of seeds, feeds, fertilizers and pesticides “cause a big dent on their agricultural production cost.”
”For the cost of fertilizer and other material inputs, we spend almost 25 percent,” Garcia said. He added that members of their council had repeatedly complained.
“One bag of fertilizer alone would cost P1,200,” he said.
For her part, the governor assured the farmers and their leaders that she would bring their appeal to the attention of the national government through the DA.
She stressed that Alcala and his office had been “very supportive to the development of agriculture in Pampanga for the past couple of years.”
“The DA is always there to provide the needed intervention especially after the onslaught of Typhoon Pedring and Quiel”, Pineda said in the dialect.
She disclosed that last year, the DA gave seed subsidies to farmers affected by the typhoons.
Pineda also cited Alcala’s “genuine concern” to Pampanga farmers when he visited the province to give P16.
5-million worth of farm machineries and other projects.
“The development of agriculture is one of the priority thrusts of my administration and I would like to assure our farmers and fisher folk that the officials of the provincial government are exhausting possible strategies to further increase their income and food production in Pampanga,” Pineda said.
The governor said that last year, some 12,000 bags of certified seeds worth P14 million were distributed to farmers in the province.
Records showed that of the total agricultural area of the province, 53,644 hectares are planted with rice, 11,433 hectares with corn and 2,622 hectares with vegetables.
About 6,536 hectares are devoted to orchard while 34,466 hectares are fishponds.
There are more than 32,000 rice farmers who reportedly produced 4,562,400 cavans of rice last year.
Pineda also urged the National Food Authority to put up buying stations in strategic areas of the province to assist farmers in marketing their produce especially during the rainy season.
The governor asked agriculture officials in the province to coordinate closely with DA Regional Director Andrew Villacorta, Philippine Rice Research Institute Executive Director Dr. EufemioRasco Jr. and Pampanga Agricultural College resident Honorio Soriano in scouting for a possible site as they have agreed to establish a 30-hectare PhilRice experimental station and rice demo farm in the province.
The project is envisioned to further boost rice production in Pampanga.
