Farmer groups have called on the Arroyo government not to depend on rice importations, insisting that it would only exacerbate the country’s food insecurity.

The militant Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) says rice importations could be a ploy to beef up the war chest of the administration’s presidential bet in the May 2010 elections.

KMP’s national council stressed that President Arroyo’s announcement that the country would import rice to answer for higher demand comes at a time when the Department of Agriculture (DA) claims to have a total national inventory that is good for the next 67 days.

Just last week, KMP said, DA squelched farmers’ fears that the country would import rice and thus dampen the domestic prices of grain. Farmers would need money to purchase seeds and pay for labor but 70 percent of all poor and middle peasants in the country could only source their cash from moneylenders who charge higher interest on their loans.

On Sunday, Malacanang contradicted the DA and said the government would purchase rice overseas. It is the second time that President Arroyo had announced the country would import rice.

KMP had been batting for greater support for millions of farmers and increases in farmgate prices to stimulate production and thus narrow the annual 10 percent deficit in harvest. If imports are not reined in, the country stands to breach the record 2.3 million metric tons (MMT) of rice it imported from Vietnam last year.

On the other hand, the moderate Sentro Saka said the impact tropical storm Ondoy on agriculture was serious, with some estimates running at P10 billion, but this does not warrant uncontrolled importations since farmers are still harvesting and would continue to do so until December.

“Among the provinces badly hit by the typhoons are major rice producing provinces such as Isabela, Cagayan, Nueva Ecija, Tarlac, Pangasinan, and Camarines Sur. These provinces, including the Ilocos provinces, Bulacan and Pampanga, constitute almost 40 percent of total rice production and 37 percent of total rice lands. The whole of Luzon, which is affected by the typhoons, generally supply 57 percent of total rice production. With the typhoon affecting as much as 70 percent of rice lands in Isabela, and probably the same percentage in the other major rice producing provinces, this means that practically more than half of Luzon’s rice production could be affected by the typhoon. This percentage is hardly negligible as it has the potential of affecting the available supply of rice,” Sentro Saka added.

It predicted that the damage would lead to a production cutback higher than the 5.6 percent that Agriculture Secretary Arthur C. Yap predicted for the main harvest season.

What is more important to KMP is that farmers should be aided quickly for them to be able to plant rice to make up for the losses due to Ondoy and Pepeng.
This should assure the market that the supply would be adequate until the first quarter of the succeeding year.

“While Mindanao and Visayas could have the potential of re-supplying Luzon, these provinces hardly produce rice surpluses. Moreover, the major rice producing areas in these regions are also flooded,” Sentro Saka said.

Nearly P1-billion worth of irrigation facilities were knocked out in Luzon alone and this would tell on the next harvest. Two-thirds of all irrigation facilities are in Luzon.