MINDANAO BANANA FIRMS
EYE CORPORATE RICE FARMS
By Manny Piñol
Davao City – The country’s biggest banana companies have expressed interest in planting rice in their leased lands to supply their own employees and workers rice needs.
During a meeting between the Department of Agriculture and the Philippine Banana Growers and Exporters Association ( PBGEA) at the Seda Hotel, the executives of the banana companies responded positively to the idea presented by the DA for them to establish corporate rice farms.
The DA suggested that areas which have been abandoned because of the Panama Disease or Fusarium which affects bananas should be planted to either rice or Sorghum.
Both rice and Sorghum are among the crops identified as Fusarium neutralizer.
PBGEA President Steve Antig immediately jumped on the idea saying that the rice farms could be the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) project of the banana companies.
Antig said that during the Presidency of Ferdinand Marcos, companies and corporations were required to establish corporate rice farms through a Presidential Decree.
Dole Philippines executive Oscar Garcia said his company would be interested in knowing what technical assistance the DA could extend to banana firms who will get involved with rice farming.
The meeting last night was actually about the issue on the country’s banana exports to Japan threatened by the discovery of residues of a banned chemical, Fipronil, in one shipment made by a small banana exporting company.
When the issue was addressed by the DA, the discussions moved to Agriculture projects which needed support from the private sector.
A technical working group will be organised by the DA to pursue the corporate rice farm project of the banana industry.
(Photos taken by Mayette Tudlas)
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