URBAN FARMER

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BY JULIO P. YAP JR.
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Friday, March 3, 2017
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THE National Seed Industry Council (NSIC) recently approved 25 new varieties developed by the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), University of the Philippines Los Baños, Philippine-Sino Center for Center for Agricultural Technology, Syngenta, and LongPing Philippines.

Dr. Oliver Manangkil, NSIC coordinator and head of the Plant Breeding and Biotechnology Division of PhilRice, said that in the batch of newly NSIC-approved varieties, the IRRI-bred Rc480 stands out.

Popularly known as GSR (Green Super Rice) 8, Rc480 is resistant to multiple abiotic stresses, such as drought, salinity, alkalinity, and iron toxicity.

Despite lesser input requirement, it can also grow under saline and drought-prone environments. In addition, it has high and stable yields.

The super rice can also offer a maximum yield of 4.4 t/ha, matures in 107 days after sowing (DAS), and has intermediate resistance to pests, such as yellow stemborer (YSB), and brown plant-hoppers (BPH).

Manangkil said six of the newly released varieties are bred by PhilRice, namely: Rc440 (Tubigan 39), NSIC Rc438 (Tubigan 38), and hybrid Rc446H (Mestiso 73) for irrigated lowland; Rc472 (Sahod Ulan 22) for rainfed lowland; and Rc462 (Salinas 21) and Rc470 (Salinas 25) for saline environment.

Yield-wise, Tubigan 39 can compete with hybrid rice varieties.

It can give a maximum yield of 10.8 t/ha. It is also given a national recommendation for exhibiting consistent resistance to pest and diseases and outstanding yield results across the country.

Moreover, it has an intermediate resistance to pests, such as white and yellow stemborers (WSB, YSB), BPH, and green leaf-hoppers (GLH).

An early-maturing variety, it has 109 DAS maturity.

To provide high-quality seeds to farmers and seed growers, the first state-of-the-art rice seed processing facility that houses advanced equipment was recently inaugurated at the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), Science City of Muñoz.

Funded by the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) under the project “Enhancing the capacity of production and distribution of high-quality rice seeds,” the facility is worth more than $2 million and can process up to 2 tons of seeds per hour.

The facility has two units of 6 tons per batch recirculating dryer; two units of 4 tons capacity per batch reversible airflow flatbed dryers; two units of 2t/hr air-screen machine; one unit of 2t/hr gravity separator; an automatic bagger and closer; and a 50 cubic meter cold storage room.

It is the first of its kind in the Philippines and expected to drastically reduce the Institute’s seed processing time by at least half, said Evangeline Sibayan, head of the rice engineering and mechanization division.

The project has also distributed 32 tons of certified inbred seeds to more than 400 farmers in Pangasinan and Nueva Ecija.

It has been training project implementers, seed analysts, inspectors, seed growers, and farmers since 2013.

Minister Kwon Won Jick from the Embassy of the Republic of Korea hopes that the facility will increase the efficiency of processing and certification of rice seeds in the country and help more farmers have an access to high-quality seeds./PN

 

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