SARA, Iloilo—Seeing better economic opportunity in a new corn seed technology, farmers in this chiefly agricultural town are now expanding to the upland areas, slowly turning the province into a major corn producer.

This was disclosed by Rosalie Ellasus, president of the Philippine Maize Federation Inc., during the 5th Philippine National Corn Congress sponsored by the Philippine Maize Federation last week.
According to Ellasus, farmers in the upland areas now appreciate better the use of appropriate technology, including seed technology developed through modern biotechnology.

One technology was developed by the seed company Monsanto Philippines for the upland areas, which best suits the terrains of Iloilo and the rest of Panay Island. Called “Tipid Saka”, the farming technology allows farmers to plant corn even in highly elevated areas with minimum, if not zero, tillage.

Using the Roundup Ready corn variety, genetically engineered to survive herbicide, farmers now harvest an average yield of 4.5 tons per hectare per cropping season, with very minimum land preparation.
Modern farm tractors, or even ones that can be used manually to tilling easier compared to the traditional way of using carabao, cannot be used in highly elevated areas.

“Before, you have to till the land, apply herbicide, before planting corn, now all you need is apply the herbicide and plant corn, no more need for massive cultivation or tillage,” Ellasus said.
Ellasus said genetically engineered, herbicide-tolerant or pest-resistant crops like the controversial Bacillus thuringiensis, or Bt corn, gives farmers an edge, as it cuts cost normally spent for pesticide even as it guarantees higher yield and income for farmers.

For corn to grow properly, extensive land preparation is needed. From time to time, farmers also need to uproot the grass to allow the crop to grow and yield better. To minimize loss from massive infestation by dreaded pests—in the case of corn, the Asian Corn Borer (ACB)—farmers need to apply chemical pesticides.

Using herbicide, farmers need not till the land to plant herbicide-tolerant corn as it kills unwanted grass and wild herbs that naturally grow along with corn in farms.

Herbicides also soften and loosen the soil, allowing the roots to breath sufficient enough nitrogen. The Bt corn is genetically engineered to resist the ACB.

Ellasus said even some of the landless farmers in Iloilo, who see better economic opportunities in planting corn, are now expanding their plantation, thus triggering a massive conversion of idle land, including what used to be grasslands, into corn fields in the upland areas.

A group of individuals in Iloilo formed the Northern Iloilo Corn Producers Association Inc. (NICPAI) also saw the opportunity. They started venturing into microfinancing to help farmers by providing them loans.

The partnership between NICPAI and the farmers have convinced some landowners in the upland areas with big landholdings to lease out their idle lands to corn farmers at P1,000 to P2,500 per hectare.
Corn farmers said for every one hectare of corn, they earn a net income of P25,000 to P35,000 per cropping season.

Iloilo has two corn cropping seasons.

NICPAI provides the farmers with capital, either in the form of cash or seeds and other farm inputs, allowing them to start planting corn which they will pay back later after harvest, plus minimum interest of 4 percent.

Delson Sonza, president of NICPAI and a member of the board of directors of PhilMaize, said even rice farmers are now shifting from rice to corn because of the income opportunity of planting corn, brought about by the emerging new market for corn—specifically for the production of bioethanol.

At least 20 percent of corn produced in the US is now being used for the production of bioethanol, causing the price of corn to increase. Aside from Brazil, the Philippines is importing high-quality corn grain for the poultry subsector from the US.

In Sara, Iloilo, there are now about 26,000 hectares of upland areas planted to genetically engineered herbicide-tolerant corn.