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 PH rice granary

Lady Vicencio

ABS-CBN News

<p>MANILA -- The province dubbed as the &quot;Philippines’ rice granary&quot; is looking to rebound this wet season after suffering huge losses due to El Niño. </p><p>The Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA) of Nueva Ecija said on Thursday that the province lost 337,573 metric tons of palay worth P103.3 million.</p><p>OPA Chief of Operations on Rice Production Evelyn Santos told ABS-CBS News that the El Niño phenomenon caused irrigation to run short in some areas.</p><div><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/business/2024/5/2/agri-damage-due-to-el-ni-o-hits-p5-9-billion-1458" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Agri damage due to El Niño hits P5.9 billion</a></div><p>“Meron po tayong rainfed lowland na kung saan po meron po silang supplemental irrigation using po ‘yong shallow tube well or engine pump. Kaya lang ma’am, kinapos na rin po ‘yon ng irrigation,&quot; Santos said.</p><p>&quot;Maging po sa irrigated ma’am,eh  kinapos na rin po ng tubig kaya po nagkaroon din po tayo ng damage especially po ‘yong sa sa tail-end areas natin,” she added.</p><p>(We have rainfed lowlands where they have supplemental irrigation using shallow tube wells or engine pumps. It&#x27;s just that the irrigation was scant. Even in the irrigated area, water has run out so we also incurred damage, especially in our tail-end areas.</p><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1715844383674Nueva%20Ecija%203.jpeg" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner" style="text-align:left">An irrigation canal lies nearly dry in Nieva Ecija. <em>Lady Vicencio, ABS-CBN News</em></span></span></span></div><p>The municipalities of Leonardo, Licab, Carranglan, Zaragoza, Aliaga, and Cabanatuan City were among towns affected.</p><p>With the low water level in Pantabangan Dam, farmers said they don&#x27;t expect expect to have any irrigation until the rainy season.</p><p>As of May 16, the water level in the reservoir was at 173.77 meters which is below its low water level of 177 meters.</p><p>With irrigation canals in their area remaining dry, some farmers have resorted to using water pump to irrigate their rice field.</p><p>In the town of Sto. Domingo, rice farmer Michael Acosta has started preparing rice paddies for the wet season. </p><div><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sPg9OIofEZc?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" width="640"></iframe></div><p>With two hectares to irrigate, Acosta is worried he will need to shell out around P20,000 for the diesel fuel for his water pump.</p><p>“Medyo kahirapan po at puro pump ang gagamitin. Kung hindi sasabayan ng ulan, aasa kami sa pump dahil ang tubig namin na manggagagaling ng Pantabangan, mga June 20 pa,” Acosta said.</p><p>(It&#x27;s a bit difficult because I only use a pump. If it doesn&#x27;t rain, we will rely on pump because our irrigation will come from Pantabangan around June 20.) </p><p>“Pag na-delay ang tubig, nagloko ang pump, tatanda ang punla. Hindi masusunod ang schedule ng tanim namin dito. Kaya sakripisyo kaming magsasaka ngayon,” he added.</p><p>(If irrigation is delayed or if the water pump breaks down, the rice seedlings will go to waste. Our crop schedule will not be followed. That’s why farmers are sacrificing this season.)</p><p>The OPA said irrigation will be supplied to some areas as early as June.</p><p>They are aiming to produce 1.1 million metric tons of palay for the wet season to offset the losses incurred during the dry season.</p><p>Santos is also optimistic that thse losses will not affect Nueva Ecija’s contribution to the country’s palay output this year.</p><div><strong>RELATED STORY:</strong></div><div><span class="fr-video fr-deletable fr-fvc fr-dvb fr-draggable" contenteditable="false" draggable="true"><iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/bAUSqg-ukBk?&amp;wmode=opaque&amp;rel=0" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen="" class="fr-draggable"></iframe></span><br/></div>

<p>The Philippines’ rice granary is looking to rebound this wet season from losses in palay production during dry season.</p>

The Philippines’ rice granary is looking to rebound this wet season from losses in palay production during dry season.

'PH rice granary' hopes for better days ahead after P103-M palay losses due to El Niño

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'PH rice granary' hopes for better days ahead after P103-M palay losses due to El Niño

Lady Vicencio,

ABS-CBN News

Published May 16, 2024 06:16 PM PHT

Read More:

el nino

nueva ecija

drought

agriculture

rice granary

rice harvest

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