Isabela farmers shift from corn to tobacco, other crops to avoid El Niño losses
ABS-CBN News, Jervis Manahan
Published March 05, 2024 03:38 PM
Several farmers in San Mateo, Isabela shifted to other crops to avoid possible losses from the El Niño phenomenon.
Those who usually planted corn planted vegetables and tobacco instead.
However, even the eggplants she planted dried due to lack of water.
“Talagang hirap Sir. Maraming nasisira, gaya ng wala kami naani, lubog pa kami sa utang. Ito po kasi may nagpapautang, di pa kami makakabayad sa utang,” Gacusan said.
A company lent them money to install water pumps so they could plant tobacco.
“Nagpapa-water pump kami, may sarili kaming water pump, kapag may El Niño, may water pump kami, may pinagkukuhanan kami ng tubig,” she said.
But water pumps can be costly as these consume several liters of gasoline per day.
“Kapag El Niño, may pinagkukuhanan kami ng tubig. Pambili lang ng gasolina ang hirap,” she said.
Gacusan said she will revert to planting corn once the weather phenomenon is over.
The local government of San Mateo, Isabela has also implemented measures to reduce the adverse effects of El Niño.
They shifted their cropping calendar to avoid getting hit by the drought.
“Dun po sa nasabi noon na may parating na El Nino kaya yung farmers din po natin, nakapagtanim ng mas maaga. October may mga nakapagtanim na, kung mapapansin nyo, iilan na lang ang standing crop ng rice,” said Ana Maylene Basilio, OIC of the San Mateo Municipal Agriculture Office.
San Mateo is the largest rice-producing town in Isabela and is also dubbed as the mung bean (mongo) capital of the Philippines.
Luckily, mung bean crops weren’t affected as they didn’t require much water.
“Alam naman natin na ang munggo ay drought tolerant na tanim, kung ang munggo, sa whole duration ng kanyang paglaki, kailangan lang nya 2-3 times na mapatubigan,” Basilio added.-*
