File photo: Agriculture and SL Agritech officials during the launch of Masaganang Ani 300 in 2019. (Contributed photo)
SANTA ROSA, Nueva Ecija –– As a farmer who had to attend to his crops on a regular basis, Danilo Bolos of Barangay Tagpos here was initially affected by the quarantine restrictions the government imposed to contain the spread of the coronavirus disease.
But Bolos, a farmer for over 30 years, has never been more inspired than seeing truckloads of rice from his province of Nueva Ecija daily to feed the quarantined people of the National Capital Region and other regions during this pandemic.
“Naramdaman ko ang karangalan bilang isang magsasaka na taga-Nueva Ecija. Hindi ito pagsasaka lang para sa sariling pamilya.,” Bolos said Friday.“Sobrang halaga po natin.“
“Hindi lang mga frontliner natin, duktor, nurse o mga pulis ang kailangan ng ating bansa. So, pinilit namanng mga magsasaka na maging masigasig,” Bolos said, noting that some farmers had also felt the heat of mobility restrictions.
They, in fact, also were apprehensive about exposure to the Covid-19 virus.
However, he noted their farmers’ group, Sapang Banoy Farmers’ Association has received requests from the Department of Agriculture, Caritas Manila, as well as the local governments of Manila and Las Piñas, among others, for steady supply.
LGUs have been rationing food packs that primarily comprised rice to residents during lockdowns.
Bolos’ perseverance paid off as he topped thousands of farmers who joined the “Masaganang Ani 300” (MA300), a program launched by hybrid rice producer SL Agritech, as he registered 339.81 cavans of palay per hectare last cropping season.
An engineer who worked for over two decades in Saudi Arabia, Bolos said he joined the program to prove that “hybridization” along with modern farming technology promises a future to young people.
MA300 aims to direct farmers to look at farming in a different perspective – the entrepreneurial view.
Bolos said he started rice farming when people are happy with 60 to 80 cavans per hectare. “Pag 100 (cavans) ay masayang-masaya na,” he noted.
“Pero patuloy na dumadami ang tao at nababawasan ang lupa,” Bolos said.
Florencio Sudoy of Barangay Mabini, Sto. Dimingo, Nueva Ecija, is the second top awardee with a 310 cavans per hectare yield.
Other top performers are Mariano “Naning” de Jesus of Barangay Manga, Candaba, Pampanga who harvested 305 cavans per hectare, and Ramon Palomo of Barangay Caballero, Guimba, Nueva Ecija who had a yield of 300.5 cavans per hectare.
Six other farmers who registered yield of not less than 250 cavans per hectare will be cited by SL Agritech in a virtual awarding ceremony on Tuesday.
Touted as the biggest hybrid rice seeds producer in ASEAN outside China and India, SL SLgritech Corp. has partnered with the Department of Agriculture and Go Negosyo for this program.
Sec. William Dar and Go Negosyo Founder, presidential adviser for Entrepreneurship, Joey Concepcion have lauded the efforts of SL Agritech to propagate the adoption of the hybrid seeds as a way to increase rice production in the country.
SL Agritech has been at the forefront of efforts to educate the farmers on the benefits of hybrid rice and it has been conducting several interventions to open the eyes of the farming community on how they can best improve their rice yields and scale up their household income.
The company vowed support to the DA’s Plant, Plant, Plant program to cushion the effect of the Covid-19 pandemic.
