SAN JOSE, Antique – The Department of Agriculture (DA) is currently validating 250 corn farmers in Antique identified to be recipients of P3,000 fuel subsidy.
“DA is giving fuel subsidy to cushion the impact of the increasing fuel price among corn farmers,” said Antique Office of Provincial Agriculture (OPA) corn coordinator Noralyn Setias.
The validation will check if they are qualified to receive the subsidy, listed with the Registry System for Basic Sectors in Agriculture, belong to a cluster of farmers with at least 75 hectares of land area planted with corn, and have existing pieces of machinery.
DA is assisting them since they are also affected by the increasing fuel price, Setias added.
She added that only 250 corn farmers are being validated because others have previously received their rice farmer’s subsidy.
“Those rice farmers who are also planting corn will no longer receive the subsidy,” she said.
Setias added that corn now commands a higher price in the market, which is P19 to P21 per kilo, because of the demand.
There is greater demand for corn now because some rice farmers have diverted into planting corn which is less laborious and needs less fuel for their machinery during land preparation. (PNA/PN)
