Nueva Ecija farmers earn millions from hybrid onions
By MARVYN N. BENANING
February 17, 2011
Manila Bulletin
MANILA, Philippines – Millionaires in just one cropping.
This is the sanguine prospect for onion growers in Bongabon, Nueva Ecija who shifted to hybrids from traditional varieties, said Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) assistant director Dante Delima, who doubles as the coordinator of the national High-Value Crops Development Program (HVCDP).
Hybrids produce up to thrice the output of traditional strains, he added.
Delima said the bumper crop is expected since BPI had restricted the importation of onions in response to the persistent complaint of Bongabon onion growers who could not compete with onions dumped in the country.
Known as the country's onion capital, Bongabon has a total of 3,000 hectares devoted to onion cultivation, more than half of the total areas devoted to the crop in the province.
Nueva Ecija accounted for 72.7 million kilos of onion output in 2009, 57 percent of the national yield of 127 million kilos for the same year.
Since it is still off-season, hybrids and the traditional red creole and yellow granex fetch higher prices, at P100 per kilo for the hybrids and P60 per kilo for the traditional varieties.
Farmer Quirino Francisco of Barangay Vega, Bongabon, who expects to harvest up to 28,000 kilos of hybrid red onions and 42,000 kilos of yellow hybrid onions from his two-hectare farm, would earn millions, according to BPI.
Another reason for the good yield this year was the direct assistance of Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala, who provided P15-million worth of hybrid onion seeds, P4.5-million worth of Red Creole and Yellow Granex seeds and P500,000-worth of onion seeds to farmers in nearby towns, said Fernando Lorenzo, Region 3 HVCDP coordinator.
As hybrid onions mature earlier than traditional varieties, those who planted in November last year will begin harvesting by the end of the current month and on to April, Lorenzo revealed.
Since supply is still low, prices are relatively high, favoring farmers like Francisco and other Bongabon farmers who planted hybrid onion, he added.
“This is good news for them, especially those who planted early, as they are so used to selling their produce at a measly price from P30 to P50 per kilo in previous years,” Lorenzo explained.
Delima said HVCDP will concentrate this year in participatory production technology development and providing onion farmers with appropriate postharvest and storage techniques and facilities.
“These efforts aim to maximize the production area in the different regions suitable for onion production to attain sufficiency and maximize export potential in the near future,” he stressed.
The Department of Agriculture (DA) has been helping close to 2,500 onion growers in Bongabon and other towns in of Nueva Ecija, who suffered huge losses in previous years due low prices and the entry of cheap imported onions from China, Lorenzo said.
This is the sanguine prospect for onion growers in Bongabon, Nueva Ecija who shifted to hybrids from traditional varieties, said Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) assistant director Dante Delima, who doubles as the coordinator of the national High-Value Crops Development Program (HVCDP).
Hybrids produce up to thrice the output of traditional strains, he added.
Delima said the bumper crop is expected since BPI had restricted the importation of onions in response to the persistent complaint of Bongabon onion growers who could not compete with onions dumped in the country.
Known as the country's onion capital, Bongabon has a total of 3,000 hectares devoted to onion cultivation, more than half of the total areas devoted to the crop in the province.
Nueva Ecija accounted for 72.7 million kilos of onion output in 2009, 57 percent of the national yield of 127 million kilos for the same year.
Since it is still off-season, hybrids and the traditional red creole and yellow granex fetch higher prices, at P100 per kilo for the hybrids and P60 per kilo for the traditional varieties.
Farmer Quirino Francisco of Barangay Vega, Bongabon, who expects to harvest up to 28,000 kilos of hybrid red onions and 42,000 kilos of yellow hybrid onions from his two-hectare farm, would earn millions, according to BPI.
Another reason for the good yield this year was the direct assistance of Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala, who provided P15-million worth of hybrid onion seeds, P4.5-million worth of Red Creole and Yellow Granex seeds and P500,000-worth of onion seeds to farmers in nearby towns, said Fernando Lorenzo, Region 3 HVCDP coordinator.
As hybrid onions mature earlier than traditional varieties, those who planted in November last year will begin harvesting by the end of the current month and on to April, Lorenzo revealed.
Since supply is still low, prices are relatively high, favoring farmers like Francisco and other Bongabon farmers who planted hybrid onion, he added.
“This is good news for them, especially those who planted early, as they are so used to selling their produce at a measly price from P30 to P50 per kilo in previous years,” Lorenzo explained.
Delima said HVCDP will concentrate this year in participatory production technology development and providing onion farmers with appropriate postharvest and storage techniques and facilities.
“These efforts aim to maximize the production area in the different regions suitable for onion production to attain sufficiency and maximize export potential in the near future,” he stressed.
The Department of Agriculture (DA) has been helping close to 2,500 onion growers in Bongabon and other towns in of Nueva Ecija, who suffered huge losses in previous years due low prices and the entry of cheap imported onions from China, Lorenzo said.
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