RP can attain self-sufficiency in rice within 2 years

The Philippines can regain self-sufficiency in rice in the next two years if the government would help in securing land suitable for the cultivation of hybrid rice seeds, businessman Henry Lim Bon Liong said.

Lim, chairman and chief executive officer of SL Agritech, said the government should expand the hectarage devoted to hybrid rice farming to boost rice production and increase farm incomes.

SL Agritech produces the SL-8 hybrid rice variety which was popularized as "Gloria Rice." With a yield of 10 metric tons per hectare, this is higher than the average three MT per hectare output using traditional varieties, and even higher than the certified seeds previously promoted by the Department of Agriculture (DA) which yields between four to six MT per hectare.

"If we could expand our riceland then we can achieve self-sufficiency in just two years. We’re hoping that the government can put more emphasis on agriculture so we can sustain our hybrid rice program," Lim told reporters.

So far, only a few thousand hectares of land are planted with the new hybrid variety.

Lim brought to the Philippines the hybrid rice seed technology from China which was developed by Chinese scientist Dr. Yuan Long Ping. His company though, perfected the technology, increasing the yield per hectare from an average of four MT to 10 MT.

He said he is encouraging the propagation of the hybrid rice seeds so that farmers can start using them and benefit from the high yield capacity.

Lim said the hybrid rice program, a flagship program of President Arroyo, could be the answer to the country’s rice supply problem.

With the hybrid rice technology, the Philippines is expected to cut down its rice imports which have cost the government P10 billion to P15 billion a year.

The DA is now pushing the hybrid rice seed technology and has been subsidizing half the price of the hybrid seeds which are sold for P2,400 per bag.

It is targeting around 14.2 million metric tons (MMT) in rice output this year or equivalent to a 97 percent self-sufficiency.

Rice production during the first half went up 12.21 percent to 6.038 MMT from 5.381 MMT during the same period last year.

Once the country becomes self-sufficient and attains surplus production, farmers could take advantage of the growing global demand for fancy and premium rice varieties, as well as hybrid rice varieties, the DA said.

The potential markets for hybrid rice include Malaysia and Japan.