With the province still reeling from the devastation of typhoon “Reming” and the perennial problem from pests such as rats and birds, Naujan, Oriental Mindoro Mayor Romar G. Marcos urged farmers to shift from conventional to organic farming to survive the global financial crisis.

Pinning his hopes on organic farming for farmers to recover from their heavy losses as a result of the typhoon, Marcos vowed to include organic farming, particularly organic fertilizer production, in the Annual Investment Plan of the municipality.

“This will institutionalize budget for organic farming,” he said.

The mayor visited the ongoing season-long training under the Organic FIELDS Support Program (OFSP) Phase 1 of the Department of Agriculture (DA) which is being implemented by Go Organic! Philippines, a consortium of nongovernmental organizations led by the Philippine Rural Reconstruction Movement (PRRM) and La Liga Policy Institute (LLPI).

Naujan is one of the seven pilot areas of the OFSP Phase 1, which aims to popularize organic farming in the country, particularly rice.

As part of the program, the season-long training, which started last December 21, hopes to empower some 100 farmers’ knowledge in organic farming systems and technologies, including organic fertilizer production.

“The farmers can substantially reduce farm production costs by using organic fertilizers.  We are encouraging them to shift to organic farming,” he said.

The mayor stressed that organic fertilizers can be produced by farmers

“Our farmers need to learn more about organic farming.  Organic fertilizer production can actually help them survive from the ongoing crisis,” he said.

The local government provides 100 percent seed subsidy to farmers.  However, because most farmers rely heavily on imported fertilizer which costs around P1,200 to P1,500 per bag, local officials are encouraging them to use organic fertilizers instead, which the farmers can produce using various techniques.

“They can make their own organic fertilizers through composting, using animal manure which they can find in their farm.  They can even sell them,” Marcos added.

A bag of organic fertilizer which is commercially available costs P350.

The onslaught of typhoon “Reming” has severely affected farmers who complain that because of the heavy losses, they may not be able hit the town’s rice production target. The Municipal Agriculture Office (MAO) of Naujan estimated the damage to rice and other crops at P17 million by typhoon Reming, which hit Southern Tagalog from November 30 to December 31, 2006.

Naujan, one of the top rice-producing towns in Oriental Mindoro, produces an average of 3.5 metric tons per hectare of rice.