Militant farmers ask DA for subsidy on farm inputs

Frustrated over the high increase in prices of farm inputs, militant farmers have demanded for subsidy on fertilizers and pesticides from the Department of Agriculture 7 to cope with the rising cost of rice production.

Nineteen different farmers groups led by the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas-Cebu chapter appeared before the office of DA 7 director Ricardo Oblena for a dialog yesterday.

During their meeting, farmer leaders presented to Oblena their problems and petitions, which they claimed will ease the impact of rice production costs on them.

Farmers asked for 39,375 sacks of Urea and Triple 14 fertilizers for three cropping, or 5 sacks of fertilizers per hectare.

They also asked for 617 liters of chemical pesticide, 71 carabaos and plows, five farm tractors, four rice threshers, 28 mechanical sprayers and one water pump to be used in the rice production by the members of the 19 farmer groups.

Nick Abasolo, chairman of KMP-Cebu, said they made the petition because they could not take the high production costs anymore.

He said the price of farming materials and equipments has doubled since January due to the series of increase in oil prices.

Compared to last year, Abasolo said their production has lessened because they could not anymore afford to buy the ideal amount of fertilizers and pesticides they used in cropping.

Abasolo said that from January to May, a sack of fertilizer could cost only P1,200 but starting June up to the present, its price doubled to P2,400.

Pesticides now cost P1,000 per liter from its previous price of P800.

Since farmers could no longer afford to buy fertilizers, their production also decreased by almost 50 percent, Abasolo said.

He cited that if he previously harvests 65 sacks of rice in one hectare, now he could only harvest 35.

Farmers do not earn because their income goes to the payment of debts which they acquired from efforts to maintain their farm despite the high cost.

Abasolo said they could not resort to organic fertilizer because their soil has already been dependent to modern fertilizers.

In response, Oblena said he would present the proposals to Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap for budget. —Jessica Ann Pareja/WAB