
The Department of Agriculture (DA) on Friday, Nov. 24, said the agricultural damage caused by the combined effects of shear line and low-pressure area (LPA) in the country has reached P147 million.
Recently, the shear line and LPA brought heavy rains and widespread floods in Eastern Visayas.
“Itong shear line natin as of to date ang apektado na natin is about 6,486 farmers. Ang naitala na na-damage is about 147 million pesos; iyong palayan natin pinakamalaki ang naapektuhan, about 145 million (So far, 6,487 farmers have been affected by the shear line. The damaged recorded has hit P147; the rice fields are the most affected, about P145),” DA spokesperson Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa said in a televised media briefing.
The agriculture department noted that Capiz is the province most affected by the shear line and LPA, incurring P80 million in damage.
Next to it is Northern Samar which sustained P45 million worth of damage to agriculture, De Mesa added.
He noted that the other provinces affected were Albay, Masbate, Sorsogon, Eastern Samar, and Samar.
De Mesa said that around 7,415 hectares of arable land have been devastated by the rains and floods.
The agency official said the DA regional offices have prepared 2,100 bags of buffer stock seeds worth P3 million to aid affected farmers.
He added that they have also prepositioned P2 million worth of corn and assorted vegetable seeds.
The agency said they have also prepared livestock, and alternative livelihood for affected farmers.
“So, this is more than P10 million na which is ready and available,” said De Mesa.
He said the DA has already coordinated with the Agricultural Credit Policy Council so they could provide a survival and recovery loan program to all the affected farmers.
He stated that each affected farmer can borrow P25,000 and pay it back over three years with no collateral or interest.