THE Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) said it is seeking a state of calamity declaration in Negros Occidental to expedite pesticide procurement in response to the red-striped soft scale insect (RSSI) infestation affecting sugarland there.
The SRA estimates the infestation to have spread to 1,505 hectares in the Visayas, of which 1,490.32 hectares were in Negros Occidental, the leading sugar-producing province.
RSSI has the potential to reduce sugar content in cane by 50%.
Sugar farms in Iloilo, Capiz and Negros Oriental have also been affected by the infestation.
Administrator Pablo Luis S. Azcona called on local government units to declare a state of calamity to expedite pesticide procurement.
“Cities and towns can do it on their own… but for Negros Occidental, we hope it can be on the provincial level because of the extent,” he told BusinessWorld.
Mr. Azcona said the affected areas are just a fraction of the land planted to sugarcane but “the rapid spread is worrisome.”
“The real extent could be bigger as there are farms that have resorted to their own remedies without reporting the matter to SRA,” he said.
The SRA said 97 hectares of sugar farms are classified as recovering from the infestation.
The DA has approved P10 million for pesticide purchases.
The SRA reported on Wednesday that as of June 8, with a few weeks still left for milling, sugar production hit 2.015 million metric tons (MMT), exceeding the previous 1.840 MMT for the current crop year. Production exceeded the actual output of 1.92 MMT in the previous crop year. — Kyle Aristophere T. Atienza