MANILA, Jan. 6 — The Philippines is one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change that a former secretary of the Department of Agriculture (DA) and now head of the India-based International Crops Research Institute for Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) urged the government for a mandatory soil analysis in all farm lands to mitigate the effects of climate change in the agriculture sector.

ICRISAT Director General William Dar said they are working for a possible agreement with the DA for the upgrading of the country’s soil laboratory to improve and hasten soil analysis so that farmers would know what seedlings to plant and what fertilizers to use that can withstand and adapt to the new environment brought about by rising global temperatures.

"The Philippines is one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change. We must implement a new paradigm of resilience, or face 30 (percent) to 40 percent reduction in yields," he said.

Dar cited the success of the so-called Bhoocetana initiative in India where crop yields raised by an average of 30 percent across three million hectares and benefited 2.2 million smallholder farmers.

"In the 2011 rainy season alone, Bhoochetana increased the production of cereals, grain legumes and oil seeds by 550,000 tons worth US$ 119 million. Our scientists estimate that (the state of) Karnataka gains US for every dollar that it invests in Bhoochetana," said Dar in an interview.

He noted that the major factor behind this is the large-scale soil testing and rejuvenation that ICRISAT scientists introduced to the farmers there.

"Deficiencies of the micronutrients boron, sulfur and zinc were particularly widespread. Fertilizers were then targeted to correct local deficiencies. They were made more accessible to farmers through a 50-percent price subsidy, information campaigns and local action committees," he said.

Dar noted that soil testing and analysis are a simple technology, which were being taken for granted.

But with the constant changes in the environment due to climate change, he said the technology should now be practiced on a massive scale in the Philippines.

"Soil analysis has been taken for granted in Philippine agriculture. We have been mining away our soils, which prevent us from maximizing production. We must bring back the health of the soil for us to optimize productivity," he noted.

Based on initial talks with the DA, Dar said that ICRISAT would help the Philippine government to conduct of a five-year soil rejuvenation program.

The proposed program, which is expected to be carried out this year in three pilot areas — one each in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao — consists of soil mapping, soil analysis, upgrade of existing soil laboratories, and training of farmers.

At least 15,000 hectares will be allotted for each pilot testing area.

An initial budget of P100 million has been allocated by the DA pending the signing of a memorandum of understanding for the year.

"Technical assistance will be provided by ICRISAT," said Dar, noting that the National Rice Program and the Bureau of Agriculture Research (BAR) will work with the India-based agency on the soil rejuvenation program.

A team of three scientists from ICRISAT will participate in the five-year soil analysis and rejuvenation program here.

"We already projected a five-year period for this program, so that this can be done technically and repeatedly, this is a running program," said Dar.

He said a team of scientists from India will visit the country to coordinate with the DA on the implementation of the program.

"If the mapping of the pilot areas are completed according to schedule, the program would be carried out in April or May 2013," he said.

Dar said the soil analysis and rejuvenation program can potentially increase the yield in most food staples like rice and corn by at least 20 percent.

The DA is set to complete its soil fertility program for rice by next year in order to establish a cost-efficient distribution of agricultural inputs and to boost certain support programs of the agency.

Dante Delima, DA assistant secretary and National Rice Program coordinator, said he has directed all regional agriculture officers to fast track the creation of their respective Soil Fertility Mapping, which aims to reduce wastage in the use of inputs and maximize logistical support to rice farmers nationwide.

According to Delima, the maps will also help farmers to check soil fertility in their rice fields without resorting to expensive soil analysis, adding that the soil fertility mapping, which will be conducted nationwide, will complement the government’s rice-self sufficiency roadmap.

To date, only Region 2 has a complete mapping of rice lands — including irrigated, non-irrigated areas and rain-fed areas.

Under the self-sufficiency roadmap, the government targets to produce more than 20 million metric tons this year to attain a 100 percent self sufficiency in rice.

Meanwhile, the government is eyeing the development of drought-resistant and flood-tolerant crops in collaboration with local and foreign research institutes in other countries.

"The recent typhoons have proven to be disastrous to the agriculture sector because of climate change. That is why the development of climate-ready crops becomes imperative to ensure food security especially for the Philippines which remains vulnerable to changing weather patterns," said Director Alicia Ilaga, former chief of the DA-Biotechnology Program Office (BPO).

Ilaga said government and private research institutions are fast-tracking research and development of such climate change-resilient rice, corn, and peanut varieties.

Climate-ready crops developed through breeding, biotechnology and selection includes drought-tolerant corn and peanut, as well as flood-resistant rice or rice with submergence tolerance trait.

"Through gene-splicing techniques, scientists are able to combine superior traits of a variety of plants to make superior plant or crop, making them resistant to their natural enemies," she said.

Such drought-resistant crops include the peanut varieties "Namnama" variety and "Asha" variety by the ICRISAT, which are now being grown in the Cagayan Valley.

The NSIC Rc 194 variety, also known as the "Submarino 1" rice variety was already commercially-released.

Submarino 1 has been infused with the flood-tolerant Sub 1 gene that allows it to survive 10-14 days of complete submergence and to renew growth when the water subsides.

Under favorable conditions, Submarino 1 produces as much as 4.5 metric tons (MT) of palay per hectare, higher than the national average of 3.8 MT per hectare in submerged conditions. [By Lilybeth G. Ison (PNA) DSP/LGI]

Source: Agri expert proposes soil analysis of Philippine farm lands to guide farmers on right seedlings, fertilizers