An agricultural research firm revealed that it is currently in the initial stage of a program that will help farmers sell palay (unhusked rice) to millers at higher than market average prices.
The program of SeedWorks Philippines, which helps develop and distribute hybrid rice varieties, will forge partnerships between rice traders and millers as part of its commitment to further empower local rice farmers in the countryside.
In an interview with FrontpagePH.com, the agricultural research firm said the program will link up its partner-rice farmers with different millers that are willing to buy US 88 palay at ₱1 higher than the average local price. This initiative will pave the way for the distribution of milled US 88 rice (US 88 Premium Quality Rice classified as hybrid Dinorado) in standard 25-kilogram sacks to retailers, which in turn will sell it to end consumers.
“SeedWorks is linking farmers who seek higher price for their US 88 harvests with millers that prefer premium-quality rice,” SeedWorks Philippines Brand Manager, Raj Nuñez, told FrontpagePH.com . “Most millers find it a win-win deal because US 88 palay mills into long-grain rice, which is also perfectly soft when cooked—ideal for the meticulous rice consumers.”
This strategy, Nuñez said, is aimed at further helping uplift the quality of lives of local rice farmers who are constantly facing challenges, especially in the middle of a pandemic. US 88 has been proven to significantly increase yield up to about 15 metric tons per hectare (in optimal conditions) from the national average of just 4.08 metric tons, based on December 2020 data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority.
It comes at a time when Filipino rice farmers are also bearing the impact of the influx of imported rice with the Rice Tariffication Law (RTL) or Republic Act 11203 that was enacted in the first quarter of 2019. RTL removes the limits on the quantity of imported rice entering the local market—a measure by the government to bring down rice grain prices in the country.
For his part, Carlos Saplala, President of SeedWorks Philippines, said they are supporting the country’s goal of self-sufficiency with high-yielding varieties that is available. “At the same time, our company supports and empowers our farmers by helping them sell their harvests at a much better price.”
The program, says Saplala, is currently being rolled out in Mindanao, Central Luzon, and Bicol, and will soon be available in other regions as well
The company also said most retailers who have started selling US 88 milled rice are raving about the good reception of their customers to the rice variety.
“Aside from its long grain and soft quality when cooked, an ideal feedback I get is that the cooked rice doesn’t easily spoil, which helps prevent food wastage that we all don’t want to happen in these times of crisis,” said Josiena Palacios, a rice retailer who is among the first ones to resell US 88 rice in Aglayan Public Market in Malaybalay City, Bukidnon.