HARVESTING of the present rice crop has commenced in Region 2, where farmers are making full use of the sunny weather. For Region 2, while harvesting has not commenced in the central parts of the Essequibo Coast, the exercise is moving apace in the northern and to some extent the southern sections.
In the areas where harvesting has commenced, farmers have reported that they are reaping an average of 20-25 bags per acre.
The red rice infestation has somewhat affected the crop,but farmers are optimistic that overall a bumper crop will result. Some 31,500 acres are expected to be harvested without much difficulty in this region. The analysis of farmers’ costs for this crop indicated that many farmers would break even with their production costs at the going yield.
However, some farmers would not recover their total costs and their profit margins will be affected. These growing uncertainties and falling yields will have alarmed policymakers in the industry about the poor quality of paddy and whether Guyana can effectively supply the Venezuelan market. Every effort would have to be made to catch up on the shortfall in the next crop of 2012.In order to achieve this; some assistance will have to be given to farmers.
The present crop of rice has been seriously affected by red rice which came from the prolonged dry spell.
In the fields that are affected by red rice, farmers should not use produce from this crop as seed because they will increase the red rice and will experience low germination and poor seedling vigour. The Ministry of Agriculture should arrange to get high-quality seeds from the RPA seed bond at Anna Regina or Burma Rice Research Station. The Hon. Robert. M. Persaud, Minister of Agriculture should seek help from NARI and the Research Station at Burma to combat the red rice infestation in the future.
Considering the critical nature of the current situation, it will be necessary to lobby these agencies to protect the interest of our rice farmers.