In a significant boost to rice production in Antique, three farmers’ associations have been equipped with advanced farm machinery. The Department of Agriculture (DA) handed over the equipment, which includes two rice combine harvesters and a four-wheel drive tractor, to the associations in a ceremony held in San Jose de Buenavista, Antique. The recipients include the Sibalom Catungan I-IV Irrigators Association in Barangay Catungan, Sibalom, the Sta. Fe Irrigators Association in Pandan, and the Cubay South Farmers’ Association in Bugasong. Sonie Guanco, the Antique chief of the DA Agriculture Program Coordinating Office, emphasized that these associations were the first to benefit from the DA’s funding for farm mechanization this year. Guanco also mentioned that more associations are slated to receive equipment next year. The associations are tasked with maintaining the machinery, which members can use at reduced rates based on internal agreements. The initiative, supported by Senator Loren Legarda and Antique Representative Antonio Agapito Legarda, aims to address the growing difficulty in hiring farm labor, highlighting the necessity of mechanization in modern agriculture.
