There is something wrong in our society when farmers who produce the food on our table have nothing to eat on their own. As ordinary Filipinos, we can look the other way or become part of the solution.
I came from a rice farming family and although we are not well off, I still consider myself lucky because my parents strive to be self-sufficient. They never had to join any rally nor blame anybody for the hardships that they face. The folk song “Magtanim Ay Di Biro” has perhaps ingrained in our minds that rice farming is tedious thus we should never become rice farmers. At least, this is how I have always looked at rice farming even though it was my family’s lifeblood.
I remember my father once brought me to the farm to experience planting rice. I think I was about 10 years old then. Under the heat of the sun, I joined the other workers in planting the rice seedlings in the muddy field. It was tedious and backbreaking and just after a few minutes, I gave up. To my young mind, I understood that my father wanted me to experience rice planting so that I would value every centavo that they gave me. I swore I would study very hard so that I will never become a farmer.
The Philippine Rice Industry
Like our Asian neighbors, our staple food is also rice. However, we are only producing around 80% of our needed rice in 2010 and import the rest. How ironic for a country which produces some of the world’s top rice scientists and hosts the International Rice Research Institute. Unfortunately, rice production do not depend on technology alone.
Our rice-exporting Asian neighbors (Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Myanmar) are located in river deltas making their land suitable for rice production and with the river feeding their rice fields with water. The Philippines on the other hand have a more varied landscape which is favorable for a more varied crop production.
Most of our rice fields in the Philippines are rain-fed with a few areas with good irrigation system. Our rice productivity is highly dependent on rain which we usually get during the typhoon season. The same typhoon can also destroy rice fields. The cyclical El Niño is causing widespread drought in the country every 10 years or so thus our small farmers are unable to grow crops during this period. As you can see, the Philippine’s natural landscape, geologic location and availability of water largely influence our capacity to produce rice.
Inefficiencies are also adding problems to our already troubled rice industry. Losses come from unmilled grains through poor harvesting and post-harvest activities, inefficient transportation, inadequate storage, wasteful processing and market spoilage, according to a Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) report in 2011.
We also have a bad habit of wasting our food. Don’t you notice how most of us leave some food on our plate? It is appalling how some people would pile up their plates with food during fiestas and only consume half of it. According to a 2011 study by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), Philippines wastes at least P23-million worth of rice per day or P8-billion worth of rice a year. This is equivalent to a third of the country’s rice imports that year. We cannot do anything with nature’s design but we are also making things worse with our wasteful habits.
There is also the bigger problem of rice smuggling. If we consider the unaccounted volume of rice that goes into the Philippine market, we are consuming more rice than what the figures show.
Negros Occidental Rice Sufficiency
According to the the Negros Occidental National Food Authority (NFA), in 2013 Negros Occidental needs at least 7.957 million bags of rice annually to feed the province’s 3.1 million population but the annual production of the province is only about 6,213, 597 bags of rice. There is a deficit of 1,743,403 bags per year thus the province has to import rice from other provinces.
The good thing is, the Provincial Government of Negros Occidental is already addressing this problem with the Negros FIRST program which focuses on food security including rice sufficiency. The Provincial Government’s support include building of additional irrigation systems, farm to market roads, post-harvest facilities, and providing technical support to farmers.
In 2013, Governor Alfredo Marañon reported that Negros Occidental is already 96 percent rice sufficient. Negros Occidental is one of the Top 10 rice producing provinces in the country for 2011 which is a good indication of the positive impact of the local government’s assistance to farmers. And already a feat considering rice is not the major product of the province. Hopefully, this can be sustained.
How Can We Help the Rice Industry
Negros Occidental is predominantly a sugar producing province and it is the lifeblood of the local economy. However, since we cannot live on cakes and pastries alone, it makes sense that we should also be rice sufficient. Besides, we cannot just grow rice in our backyard unlike vegetables. Supporting the rice industry should also be our top priority.
The rice industry has several support industries. Unlike the sugar industry which uses imported Tramontina cane knives (espading) and machinery, rice farming implements are mostly locally made – form the scythe (garab) to the rice threshers. Modern machinery and equipment are already used in rice farming but since rice farms are usually small landholdings averaging around 0.5 to 4 hectares, a lot of farmers are still dependent to traditional equipment. A thriving rice industry will also help these industries survive.
Government support to the rice industry is making positive results and n fact the Philippines has produced the highest rice yield per hectare for the past three years among ASEAN countries. Our main problem is that our population is growing at a rate that is greater that what we can feed so our productivity gains are useless if we do not curb our population growth.
As ordinary Filipinos, we can also help our rice industry in our own little way. We do not need to take up arms or join rallies in order for us to help our small farmers.
1. Eat Less White Rice
Based on data from PhilRice, Western Visayas is one of the highest per capita consumption of rice. You might think that by eating more rice you are helping the rice industry but by eating more rice you are only making our government import more rice. A shift in our diet may mean more opportunities for our farmers to grow other carbohydrate-source crops and not just rice. If you cannot help but eat rice, at least eat brown rice. Brown rice is unpolished rice and since the bran is retained, it is more nutritious and you actually eat less rice.
2. Reduce Rice Wastage
The Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI), under the Department of Science and Technology’s 2008 data revealed that every Filipino wastes an average of 3 tablespoons (9 grams) of rice daily, which is equivalent to 3.3 kilograms per year. Multiply that to 100million Filipinos! Let us all be responsible of our consumption because the rice we waste could feed a lot of hungry Filipinos. With the worst El Niño we are currently experiencing, government needs our help in order to help manage a looming food crisis.
Let us cook and eat just the right amount every meal thus reducing table waste. This will increase the amount of rice available for consumption. Let us teach our children to eat every morsel of rice on their plate just like what our parents taught us to do.
The Bacolod City Council also passed an ordinance in 2014 mandating food businesses to serve half cup of rice so consumers can order only what they can consume. Besides, researchers are advising us to eat less rice and more fruits and vegetables in order to stay healthy.
3. Buy Rice Directly from the Farmers
The price of rice at the market is dictated by supply and demand but we can never be so sure that there is no cartel or hoarding happening. Farm gate price of rice is definitely cheaper and if you also prefer to buy organic rice, it is better to buy directly from the farmers to be sure they are really producing organic rice. If you can’t do so, at least buy from reputable traders preferably those who are into fair trade. This is too much effort for some of us but if we care for our farmers, we must help them become profitable and sustainable.
Here’s one practice I have observed from personal experience in the field which is really heartbreaking. Most rice farmers are poor and don’t have capital to finance their farm operations so they turn to “alili”. What they do is borrow money from loan sharks for their farm inputs and for their daily needs during planting season. These loans are paid with palay during harvest season. For every P1000, the farmer will pay four sacks of palay. Say two sacks when milled will make one sack of rice selling at P2500 per sack, this means the interest is P1500. In a period of three months this is 50% interest per month. If this is not usury, I don’t know what is.
4. Teach The Youth To Value The Rice Farmers
By letting me experience rice planting my Tatay was trying to teach me that rice farming is not easy but somebody has to do it. Unlike sugarcane which you plant and harvest in 10-12 months with less maintenance, you got to have a lot of patience in rice farming. You have to understand a little science too. You have to understand the soil, weather, and the other life forms that co-exist with rice. Our farmers may not use the language of science but there is some science in their traditional practices.
So how can we teach the youth these valuable lessons? By letting them experience rice farming, or at least a part of rice farming. The Quiet Place Resort in Bago City offers a rice harvesting experience designed for teens for a reasonable fee which already include welcome drink, breakfast and lecture on rice farming. You might ask why in the world would you pay for something as back-breaking as rice harvesting? Consider it payment for a lifelong lesson that your child will learn. If you can’t have this activity with your child, at least expose them to farming communities so they will get to value hard work and be thankful for the food on their plate.
5. Encourage Our Youth To Pursue Careers in The Agriculture Sector
We desperately need a young breed of Filipino farmers. The average age of a Filipino farmer is 57 and we might have a shortage in around 15 years. But like myself, most rice farmers’ children would not have anything to do with farming because most of us were brought up thinking that farming is not lucrative. And most of our Agriculture graduates would prefer to work abroad for bigger paychecks. This is why some farm owners would prefer to sell their land some of which are converted into residential subdivisions. This loss of agricultural land will have a long term negative impact to our rice production.
To encourage our youth to enroll in Agriculture courses, government scholarship programs give priority to these courses. There are also State Universities and Colleges offering these courses. The Central Philippines State University (formerly NSCA) in Kabankalan City, produces top notch Agriculturists who now serve in the government and private sector. Agricultural science courses are likewise identified by DOST as priority courses and included in its scholarship program. We need young and educated farmers who are more innovative, more receptive to modern technology and have a more business approach to farming.
One trend I noticed today among professionals is that some wish to retire and become farmers. How ironic when farmers wish their children to become professionals. But really, there is so much opportunity in agriculture for our youth not only as agripreneurs but as investors, researchers, among others.
Our food security is very dependent on the future generations’ interest in agriculture. The Philippines is still an agricultural country and we have so much natural resources and so many talented youths if only we utilize them properly. We may not be able to unshackle our rice farmers from poverty with the little things we do but it is better than pointing fingers and doing nothing.
I may not have become a farmer but it still remains an option. As they say, you can take the girl out from the farm but you can’t take the farm out of the girl.
Sources:
Global Food Losses and Food Waste – http://bit.ly/FoodLosses
Philippine Rice Industry Primer Series – http://bit.ly/RicePrimer
Negros Occidental Short of Rice Production – NFA – http://bit.ly/NegOccRice
Filipino Farmers – A Dying Breed? – http://bit.ly/FilipinoFarmers
Philippines Post Highest Rice Yield in ASEAN – http://bit.ly/RiceYield