– 36% of crop harvested so far

RICE production continues to be favourable with the latest report showing that 130,005 tonnes of rice was harvested for the first quarter of the year.

According to a press statement from the Ministry of Agriculture, farmers across the country are expressing their satisfaction as harvesting figures for the first rice crop continue to be favourable.

While harvesting is only 36 per cent complete, the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB) has reported that a total of 200,008 tonnes of paddy, which is equivalent to 130,005 tonnes of rice, have been harvested as of March 28, 2019.

GRDB’s General Manager, Nizam Hassan, made this disclosure as he lauded the efforts of farmers and the extension officers in ensuring that the industry prevails amidst ever-growing challenges. “Despite the challenges– access to water in some areas– we were able to cultivate 88,147 hectares of farmland, which is 7,112 hectares more than the last or autumn crop of 2018. Some regions did extremely well and we congratulate our rice farmers for their efforts, hard work and commitment to the sector,” Hassan said.

Farmers in Baiboo/Cane Grove and Golden Grove/Mahaica, Region Four have completed 69 per cent of their harvesting for this crop with a total of 276,100 bags of paddy harvested so far, equivalent to 17,538 metric tonnes of paddy.

Additionally, harvesting figures illustrate that farmers in Region Two have completed 61 per cent of harvesting, with those in La Bel Alliance-Windsor Castle harvesting 196,125 bags of paddy and those in Queenstown-Reliance harvesting 151,330 bags of paddy thus far. Overall, a total of 47,049 metric tonnes of paddy have been harvested in this Region.

Agriculture Minister Noel Holder has lauded the efforts of Guyana’s rice farmers in ensuring continued success of the industry, noting that they continue to express commitment to the sector’s growth and development. He also urged farmers to continue to apply the advice of the extension officers in executing the six-point practice to ensure maximum production and productivity is achieved.

According to the subject minister, while government has been implementing key policy initiatives to ensure the industry prevails, it is necessary for all players within the industry to play their part. “We have been doing exceptionally well when it comes to production and productivity, but it is the farmers who deserve the applause for always returning to the fields and doing what needs to be done during every stage of the crop cycle,” Minister Holder said. Other regions like Three, Five and Six have reportedly harvested 8,460.33, 59,710.93 and 67,249.63 metric tonnes of paddy, respectively, as of March 28th. With harvesting ongoing, GRDB hopes to achieve its 2019 first crop production target which is 520,000 tonnes of paddy by the end of the harvesting process. Farmers across the country are currently receiving favourable prices as paddy prices range from $ 2,400 to $3,300 per bag or $36,912 to $50,754 per tonne.