Eighty farmers associations in the Province of Antique received a total of 100 granule applicators from the Department of Agriculture (DA) Western Visayas on June 9.
Granule applicators are used for the precise distribution of seeds, fertilizer, and pesticides. This knapsack-type farm equipment has 26 liter-tank capacity and it is powered with a gasoline engine.
Deputy Speaker Loren Legarda said in a phone message that about 4,805 rice farmers will benefit from this intervention.
The farmer beneficiaries are from the municipalities of Culasi, Belison, San Jose, Hamtic, Laua-an, Bugasong, Valderrama, Tobias Fornier, and Patnongon.
“I hope that our farmers and irrigators’ associations will benefit from this,” said Rep. Legarda who cited that other towns failed to comply with the requirement to avail of the P50,000-worth granule applicator.
DA Western Visayas Regional Executive Director Remelyn Recoter, on the other hand, said that the P5 million fund for the granule applicators was realized through the initiatives of the former senator.
“Through the efforts of DS Loren, DA was able to provide P105 million to the Provincial Government of Antique for the procurement of machinery for rice, corn, high-value crops as well as poultry and livestock,” said Recoter.
She added that DA is continuously implementing programs and projects to improve the productivity and income of the farmers.
“As part of the Ahon Lahat, Pagkaing Sapat Kontra COVID-19, 79,000 bags of urea fertilizer under the Rice Resiliency Project are allotted for the province,” she said.
Recoter also thanked the provincial government of Antique for buying the products of the farmers and fishers as inclusion in the food packs when the province was under enhanced community quarantine.(SMHToreno/DA-RAFIS 6)
