Eight rice farmers’ associations from Negros Occidental will be included in the first batch of farmers from Region 6, who will get a share from the tariffs collected in the importation of rice.
The eight farmers associations are from the cities of Bago, La Carlota, Himamaylan, and Kabankalan, and the towns of Binalbagan, Ilog, Valladolid, and San Enrique.
Engr. Albert Barrogo, regional agricultural engineering head of the Department of Agriculture, said they will distribute tractors with combine harvesters and other agricultural machines to the farmers in the first week of December.
Negros Occidental Provincial Agriculturist Japhet Masculino said the money used to purchase the farm machineries was sourced out from P10-billion tariff collected from the importation of rice, under the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Program of the DA, and implemented by the Philippine Center for Postharvest Development and Mechanization. – MLipa
