GOLDEN RICE. Chief of the Office of the Provincial Agriculturist Nicolasito Calawag (left) and DA-PhilRice Negros Branch Director Gerardo Estoy (right) release a sack of Golden Rice to farmers in San Jose de Buenavista, Antique on June 2, 2022. Calawag said the new palay variety would address the province's malnutrition problem. (PNA photo courtesy of Antique PIO) SAN JOSE DE BUENAVISTA, Antique - The "Golden Rice", a new palay variety developed by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), is being eyed to address the malnutrition problem in Antique. The province, which has a history of high malnutrition rate, has been identified as a pilot area for the new variety in Western Visayas, Office of Provincial Agriculturist chief Nicolasito Calawag said in an interview on Friday. "Golden Rice is rich in Vitamin A that it could address the Vitamin A deficiency that leads to malnutrition among our children," Calawag said. Based on data provided by the Provincial Planning and Development Office, Antique, for the past two years, had been number one in terms of stunting or impaired growth and development due to malnutrition, among children zero to 59 months old. The province had a malnutrition prevalence rate of 10.76 percent in 2020 and 12.09 in 2021, it added. While various feeding programs had been undertaken by the provincial government, such as providing fresh cow's milk and eggs to the Department of Education learners in the province, the problem of malnutrition among children remains. Calawag said he is optimistic that with the farmers' propagation of the Golden Rice, residents of Antique, particularly the children, would be able to have a more nutritious staple food in their diet. He and farmers from the towns of Sibalom and Patnongon, received six sacks of Golden Rice for free from the Department of Agriculture - Philippine Rice Research Institute on June 2. "The town of Sibalom has been identified, being the rice granary of Antique and that there is a seed grower who will be making available his harvested production as seeds to other farmers," he said. Calawag said the seed grower, during harvest time, will make available the produced palay to other farmers who may be interested in also planting the Golden Rice. The farmer-recipients will supply the rice requirement of the local government unit for its supplementary feeding program. Once planted, the Golden Rice will only take 108 to 110 days to be harvested. "Forty kilos of Golden Rice seeds will be planted on a hectare of rice land," he said. One hectare of irrigated land planted with Golden Rice will have a yield of about 100 cavans of palay. To ensure the success of this pilot project, a rice technician will be assigned to assist the farmers from land preparation to harvest. (PNA) }