Bago hardest hit as sugarcane pest ravages 546 hectares in 2 Visayas regions

NEGROS OCCIDENTAL, Philippines – The red-striped soft scale insect (RSSI) infestation has ravaged over 546 hectares of sugarcane plantations across the Negros Island Region and Western Visayas, with Bago City suffering the most damage.

In a June 2 report, the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) said the infestation has so far affected 546.10 hectares of sugarcane fields, impacting 294 sugar planters in 16 towns and cities in Negros and two in Panay.

Negros Occidental, which has about 250,000 hectares devoted to sugar farming, bore the brunt of the infestation.

Bago, its component city, alone reported 124.76 hectares of affected plantations, followed by:

• Cadiz City – 84.97 hectares
• Victorias City – 74 hectares
• Manapla – 74 hectares
• Murcia – 63.62 hectares
• La Carlota City – 31.77 hectares
• La Castellana – 26.51 hectares
• Silay City – 22.97 hectares
• EB Magalona – 15.26 hectares
• Bacolod City – 7 hectares
• Calatrava – 6 hectares
• Sagay – 5.32 hectares
• Toboso – 4.63 hectares
  

In Negros Oriental, Mabinay town reported 2.50 hectares of sugarcane plantations affected.

On Panay Island, the pest has spread to two municipalities: Sigma in Capiz, with 1.60 hectares damaged, and Anilao in Iloilo, with 0.50 hectares affected.

On Thursday, June 5, Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. approved a P10-million fund request of the SRA to combat the rapidly spreading pest in both regions.

The fund will be used to purchase pesticides and provide technical support to affected sugar planters in an effort to immediately contain the RSSI outbreak.

“Whatever support they need from the national government, we will give it,” Laurel said during his visit to Bacolod City where he met with sugar planters over the infestation.

Laurel also said the Department of Agriculture’s intelligence and enforcement units were on heightened alert against the movement of “patdan” (cane points) from one area to another, as the DA ramps up inspections at various ports to prevent the spread of the pest nationwide.

According to the SRA, the pest can reduce sugar content in canes by up to 50%.

From sugar to rice

Laurel was also in Bacolod to launch the government’s P20/kilo rice program, where 10,000 kilos of rice were sold to 1,000 indigent residents identified from senior citizens, persons with disabilities, solo parents, and 4Ps beneficiaries.

The rice, milled in Valladolid, Negros Occidental, was part of the city’s 294,000-kilo stockpile for the program’s initial phase.

“Maganda, masarap at walang bukbok (Good, tasty, and no weevil),” Laurel said as beneficiaries sampled the rice during the launch.

Francis Tolentino (not the senator), a 59-year-old tricycle driver, said the program would help the city’s poor save some money.

The event shut down a portion of the four-lane Hilado Street the entire morning, drawing over 1,000 residents. Some without rice tickets were told to wait for future distributions, which will be rolled out by clusters in the city’s 61 barangays.

Bacolod Mayor Albee Benitez said the program will continue while stocks last, while Laurel said he hopes the city government would sustain the effort until December, with the national government taking over in 2026.

To maintain the P20 price, local governments must shoulder at least P6.50 per kilo of the P13 subsidy gap.

Critics raised sustainability concerns. “It’s a plaster solution to a campaign promise,” said Reverend Father Julius Espinosa, head of the Social Center of the Diocese of Bacolod, warning that limited NFA stocks could undermine the effort.

Laurel, however, said billions of pesos have been earmarked and that he will inspect NFA offices nationwide to ensure supply. Negros Occidental has allocated P20 million for a similar project. – Rappler.com