• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
The Department of Agriculture (DA) is releasing P235 million to combat the spread of red-striped soft scale insect (RSSI) infestation and provide direct financial relief to affected sugarcane farmers in the Visayas regions.
In a forum with Negros Occidental mayors in Talisay City, Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. announced on Friday, July 24 that a significant portion of the response strategy involves cash relief through the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
Of the amount, the P200 million cash aid will be allocated for up to 20,000 farmers, with an initial 12,400 affected sugarcane farmers set to receive P10,000 each.
In addition to direct financial assistance, P35 million will be downloaded directly to local government units across Negros Occidental to manage localized spraying operations.
Some P25 million has been earmarked for drone service rentals and operational expenses and P10 million for the procurement of systematic chemical pesticides and other treatments.
Data of the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) as of July 17 showed the RSSI infestation has hit 30,591 hectares of sugarcane fields, representing 33.48 percent of the 277,080 hectares planted across the Negros Island Region, Western Visayas, Central Visayas, and Eastern Visayas.
The outbreak has directly impacted 12,327 farmers to date.
Of the affected areas, 28,464.75 hectares of sugarcane farms were infested by RSSI in Negros Island.
In Western Visayas, 1,523 hectares were affected; Eastern Visayas, 592.50 hectares; and Central Visayas, 10.30 hectares.
Noting that organic biocontrol agents are currently limited, Tiu Laurel said the first wave will utilize approved systemic chemical agents across 25,000 hectares.
Ground operations will deploy a combination of manual backpack sprayers and roadside spray tank vehicles relocated from other regions, and 40 specialized drones to be brought in Negros from Isabela province.
Cadiz City Mayor Salvador Escalante Jr., who chairs the Negros Association of Chief Executives, said mayors have adopted a unified protocol in addressing RSSI by implementing chemical treatment in farms suffering Level 2 or Level 3 damage.
Farms experiencing Level 1 damage may use biological control agents.
To break the cycle of annual RSSI recurrences, the DA is scaling up its biological control capabilities.
While SRA has developed bio-control agents, mass production capacity needs expand nationwide, Laurel said.
He added that DA laboratories across the country will mass-produce biological fungi, tapping also local government units as well as universities and colleges to help in the mass production. | GPB
