The Philippines has one of the lowest rates of mechanical equipment use in Southeast Asia, compared to, say, Vietnam and Thailand.
That means Filipino farmers are inefficient, thus yielding low productivity.
If the government allocates a budget for farm mechanization, there will be no need to import rice.
Adding salt to injury (like adding formalin to imported fish caught in the West Philippines Sea), Agriculture Secretary Manny Piñol has come up with “bara-bara” solutions.
Does “DA” mean the Department of Alibi?
No explanation can justify why Filipinos can’t eat decent rice.
The best solution is PRODUCTION.
Immediately after his appointment as agriculture secretary, Piñol promised there will be no more rice importation.
What happened? He has no technical know-how about modern methods of rice production.
His expertise is to import rice with weevils (“bukbok”) and “galunggong” with formalin.
ISIDRO C. VALENCIA, Taguig City