More funds, land for hybrid rice production in PH sought

MANILA, Philippines  -SL Agritech Corp., the country’s largest hybrid rice producer, is asking President Marcos to provide additional and long-term funding for farmers and devote a bigger land area for hybrid rice to achieve the government’s rice self-sufficiency goal.

“We need P7 billion to P8 billion for at least 10 years for us to produce enough seeds. That is what we asked from the government,” SL Agritech chair and CEO Henry Lim Bon Liong told the Inquirer.

He said the company was spending about P1 billion per hectare to produce seeds for hybrid rice, a type of rice bred from two different parents as defined by Laguna-based International Rice Research Institute.

“How can you fund a long-term investment [with] a short-term loan?” he said. “If we want to be self-sufficient in rice, we should also be self-sufficient in seeds. If we are sufficient in rice but we don’t have enough seeds and we only rely on importation, [then] what will happen if there will be a shortage of seeds worldwide?”

SL Agritech technical and promotion support consultant Frisco Malabanan said farmers should also gain easier access to loans with zero or low interest rates.

The issues were raised during a recent meeting with Mr. Marcos, who concurrently heads the Department of Agriculture.

“The problem for farmers is that the government’s credit program is not that accessible. Farmers do not want to go back and forth to the bank to comply with the requirements and secure financing because they are too busy cultivating their lands. That’s why they patronize the informal credit conduits,” said Malabanan.

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