Agriculture officials corrected what might have been a solon’s honest appreciation of facts that caused his disturbing comparison of the past and present rice sufficiency levels in Bohol. They clarified the issue so that the Boholanos, particularly the rice farmers themselves and other agriculture stakeholders, may not also be misled. The rice production in Bohol in 2011 in fact increased by 21%-27% at 231,569 metric tons (mts) as against the harvest of 191,174 mts in 2010, they said. Department of Agriculture (DA) Asec. Dante Delima said Bohol posted a very high rice yield increase which mainly contributed to the good performance of Central Visayas. Delima and DA Regional Director Angel Enriquez congratulated the Boholanos led by Gov. Edgar Chatto because Bohol is at the same time among the provinces in the country with excellent rise in rice harvest.

Former Senate President Ernnesto Maceda, in his Philippine Star column Search for Truth on August 16, 2012, cited Bohol for having “posted the highest increase in rice production.” In his press releases, Rep. Erico Aumentado of the 2 nd District supposedly felt sad as he reported that Bohol’s rice self-sufficiency dropped from 113% in 2008 to 76.17% in 2011. The solon blamed the concentrated use by Bohol farmers of inbred rice seeds instead of hybrid. But according to the agriculture officials, including OIC Provincial Agriculturist Larry Pamugas, rice production increased here precisely because Bohol farmers used the inbred variety. They asserted that it is, therefore, incorrect to conclude that the use of inbred seeds reduced the production in 2011 compared to that in 2008, considering that 90%-95 of Bohol farmers used inbred seeds. The congressman claimed that rice sufficiency dropped because of the wide use of inbred seeds apparently to lay his basis for selling his hybrid program, but agriculture sources said the solon failed to impress.

The unanimous assessment of the real score likewise came up in a consultative meeting called by the governor with the different agriculture line agencies in the province and region like the Bohol Agricultural Promotions Center (APC), Office of the Provincial Agriculturist (OPA), DA-7 Regional Field Unit, National Irrigation Administration (NIA-7) and Bureau of Agricultural Statistics (BAS). Among those in the meeting were Pamugas, DA regional rice staff Rogelio Davalan, Engr. Olimpio Galagala of NIA-7, Engr. Eugene Cahiles of APC/PATCO-Bohol, and Sergio Cuaco who heads OPA’s Crops Division. Their common data-based evaluation and clarification were reported by Pamugas during the governor’s weekly Friday forum with the media, the Kita ug Ang Gobernador. They further clarified that the rice sufficiency level in 2008 is not comparable with that in 2011 since different parameters were used.

In 2008, the per capita consumption was only 85.28 kilograms (kgs) of rice while the per capita consumption in 2011 rose to 134.47 kgs. Also in 2008, Bohol posted a rice production of 218,701 metric tons (mts). In 2011, production climbed to 231,569 mts. Using the parameter of only 85 kgs per capita consumption in determining the rice self-sufficiency levels based on the above-cited two annual productions, the rice self-sufficiency in 2008 at 113% would be clearly lower than in 2011 which could reach 122.58%. It is a reality, however, that the agricultural statistics bureau recorded the per capita consumption in 2008 at only 85 kgs as against the far higher 134 kgs for 2011, thus resulting in a sufficiency level of only over 77%, agriculture officials explained. But they said this must never mean that the rice production in 2011 decreased because Bohol in fact recorded the highest yield increase in the region and nationwide. They stressed that it is wrong to say that the use of inbred seeds lowered the rice harvest in 2011 compared to the 2008 yield, reiterating further that 90%-95% of Bohol farmers used inbred seeds. Delima said that in the national level, 95% of Filipino farmers planted inbred varieties. The DA assistant secretary, who is also the national rice production program coordinator, timely met here with the DA directors from across the country for their mid-year assessment last week.

NO CONFLICT ON INBRED, HYBRID

Chatto said there is no conflict between using inbred and hybrid seeds because his ultimate vision is for Bohol to attain sustainable agriculture. The farmers are free to choose according to their capacities to sustain their food-producing industry, the governor said. But Delima and other agriculture officials revealed that the use of inbred seeds has many advantages to most farmers because they have lesser cost, lesser inputs and are resistant and easy to manage resulting in high production Aside from their very high cost, extensive need for fertilizers, chemicals and other inputs, and susceptibility to climate change, the hybrid varieties are location-specific. This means that hybrid rice farming can prosper in one area but “fail” in another site, according to the DA people. Still, the farmers are given the prerogative what varieties to use, either inbred or hybrid, as long as they are proven by results based on the techno-demo conducted in different sites in the province. In promoting the hybrid seeds, Aumentado specifically pushed for two varieties, the SL8 and SL11.

Agriculture officials said there are many other hybrid varieties that can be used in Bohol and other parts of the country, provided that they are tested in specific areas for high-yielding results. Agriculture insiders claimed that the supplies of Aumentado’s two hybrid varieties are “monopolized.” Bohol Farmers Multi-Purpose Cooperative (BOFAMCO) vice chair Bernardo Jumo, manager Anacleto Granaderos and irrigators’ association president Danilo Garcia confirmed the advantages of inbred seeds based on their experiences and practices until now. As farmers used inbred seeds, Bohol’s significant increase in rice production by 21%-27% in 2011 was even far higher than the national increase of 4%. (Ven rebo Arigo)