TUGUEGARAO CITY, Cagayan (PIA) — The Department of Agriculture (DA) has introduced direct seeding technology using drones to rice farmers in the Cagayan Valley.
Robert Busania, regional technical director for operations of the agriculture department, said the direct seeding technology through drone is the latest and the fastest rice seeding technology that has already been piloted in DA’s demonstration farms.
He said they have purchased two agricultural drones for pilot testing and the newest technology is now ready to be introduced to farmers.
“When we tested this technology, it took us only a few minutes to finish seeding a hectare of rice field. It will eliminate time consumption and labor cost because, in the traditional transplanting technology, it is time-consuming and labor-intensive,” Busania said.
He also said drones can also be utilized in applying plant fertilizers and pest control.
He said they will identify over 20,000 to 30,000 farmers, who are members of cooperatives, to become recipients of assistance for the implementation of the direct seeding technology in the region.
DA 2 Regional Technical Director Roberto Busania discusses the advantages of drone seeding technology in rice farming. (Image by PIA)
“In the next planting season, you will see drones flying in rice fields already. I am sure that our farmers will embrace this technology because this is very favorable to them as it will not only lessen their planting time and labor cost but also boost their productions,” he said.
Busania also said that in other agricultural countries, especially in China, the utilization of drones in direct seeding is very high.
However, he admitted that DA could not implement the program alone that’s why they tapped the assistance of private sector service providers to capacitate farmers on the technology.
The Department of Agriculture – Agricultural Training Institute Region 2 demonstrates the operation of drone to rice farmers in Isabela. (Photo courtesy of DA-ATI Region 2)
Busania said the drone seeding technology is part of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s agriculture modernization and farm mechanization agenda. It also supports the food security thrust of the present administration.
In support of this, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) Region 2 has opened a training course on agricultural drone operation through its accredited farm school, the Agricom Farm Tech Academy.
Provincial Director Vilma Cabrera of TESDA Isabela said interested farmers may visit the TESDA provincial office to avail of the free training program to be equipped on the operation of the agricultural drone.
Mateo Agudo, a rice farmer in Peñablanca, Cagayan, said he will avail of the new technology to be introduced by DA and is willing to undergo training at TESDA.
“This will be very helpful as it will reduce the labor cost and also lessen the procedures of planting rice. I will no longer need to hire many individuals to transplant the seedlings because of this new technology,” he said. (OTB/PIA Region 2)
