LARENA, Siquijor, Philippines — Gearing to make the country rice sufficient by 2013, the Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Training Institute (DA-ATI) is pushing for the consumption of root crops as an alternative staple food, a move which jives with the Philippine Food Staples Self-Sufficiency Roadmap (FSSR).

The Department of Agriculture in Region 7 (DA 7) recently hosted an appreciation course on Alternative Staple Food Production in Larena to promote root crops consumption. Some 30 farmers and agricultural extension workers attended the said event.

Course speakers include Ma. Gracia Soliva-Pungay and Dr. Roberto Castro of DA-ATI 7.

Pungay introduced high value crops like cassava (kamoteng kahoy), taro (gabi), yam (ube), and sweet potato (kamote) as good staple food substitutes since these crops also have carbohydrates content like rice and corn.

It was also noted that root crops are rich in beta carotene, inulin, minerals and micro-nutrients.

“We can produce more root crops and eat them as alternative to rice,” she said.

Other root crops also considered as alternative staple food are such indigenous crops as taro (palaw), bitter yam (kolot), yam (apale) and nipa tree (saksak).

Meanwhile, Pungay stressed that the FSSR’s aim to make the country rice self-sufficient by 2013 are encouraging local farmers to plant aforesaid root crops as Central Visayas alone has an increasing population of rice eaters.

In Region 7, the only the province that is rice-sufficient is Bohol; other such neighboring provinces as Cebu relies on the rice surplus of rice-producing provinces.