Davao City’s rice production is insufficient to meet local demand, forcing the city to rely on neighboring provinces.

Rojean Grace G. Patumbon

THE City Agriculturist Office (Cagro) reported that local rice production cannot sustain Davao City for even a month, thus it is heavily reliant on supplies from neighboring provinces.

Pablita Almador, focal person of rice production at Cagro, said during the ISpeak media forum, on Thursday, November 22, 2024, at the City Mayor’s Office, that the city has only 400 hectares of irrigated rice fields, with the largest area located in Calinan District.

Almador added that there are only 200 hectares of rain-fed rice fields in the city with the largest areas for rice production being in the uplands of Paquibato District. However, she emphasized that the production is still small and there is only one planting cycle per year. 

In 2023, the city’s rice production totaled 6,000 metric tons of fresh palay, with only 60 percent of that being harvested.

“So ang atoang produce diri sa Davao City dili gyud siya maka [Our produce here in Davao City cannot, it cannot] sustain, makapakaon sa [it will not feed] Davao City for the whole year round,” she said. 

Almador explained that the city relies heavily on rice from Davao Oriental, Davao del Norte, Davao del Sur, and Davao de Oro. Due to this reliance, the engineering division of Cagro has been scouting potential areas for expansion, particularly in the lowlands, where land and crop conversions have occurred to make way for other agricultural products. 

She also said that their office is looking at the upland areas of Paquibato and Marilog, which have significant potential for rice production.

One of the key factors their engineering division is considering is the availability of water sources in these areas, as this would allow them to transform the uplands into rice paddies. 

Almador also revealed that they have expanded rice paddies by around three hectares in Barangay Bangtol.

She added that the city’s rice yield is approximately 4.5 metric tons per hectare, but many farmers rely heavily on government assistance, including fertilizers.

Currently, she said, the Department of Agriculture (DA) provides rice seedlings through a discount voucher system. During the most recent distribution, farmers received around 3,400 fertilizers which is equivalent to two bags of fertilizer — still quite minimal.

Cargo highlighted that each Filipino consumes around 125 to 130 kilograms of rice per year. As part of National Rice Awareness Month, the office is advocating against food waste and encouraging people to consume rice in moderation. 

One solution they are promoting is the return to making rice blends or rice mixes. Almador suggested that people could mix rice with corn (mais), banana, or sweet potato to stretch their rice supply for the family. RGP

Published Date: November 24, 2024