KIDAPAWAN CITY – Severe rat and rice blast infestation hit 13 of the 24 villages in Kabacan town, North Cotabato, damaging close to P12 million worth of crops there, the town’s agricultural technologist said on Tuesday. “Thousands of rice crops in these areas were devastated by the said insects which started during the second cropping in November last year," Tessie Nidoy, the town’s agricultural technologist said. Nidoy said 1,357.80 hectares of rice fields with an estimated P12 million worth of crops were severely damaged by rat and rice blast infestations. The massive pest infestations were reported in the villages of:
Bangilan; Cuyapon; Dagupan; Katidtuan; Kilagasan; Lower Paatan; Magatos; Malamote; Malanduage; Osias; Salapungan, and Upper Paatan. Nidoy said the affected villages are Kabacan town's known rice producers. Kabacan is considered as one of Central Mindanao’s major rice and corn-producing areas. The town also hosts a government rice and corn research center. Nidoy disclosed that this was the first time that the town experienced this kind of infestation. The problem was noted after the farmers shifted to a different variety of seeds — RC 158, a high yielding rice variety recommended by the Philippine Rice or PhilRice. Nidoy theorizes that the new variety of rice has soft and sweet stalks might have triggered rat and fungus to attacks the on the plants, especially in the vegetative stages. The agriculture expert also said unfavorable weather conditions, experienced in almost all towns in North Cotabato since December last year, could have also triggered the infestation. “It is easy to determine whether there is infestation in the farm. The yellowish coloring of the stem and leaves of the rice indicates that rat and rice blast fungus are attacking the plants," Nidoy explained. Nidoy fears that aside from rice fields, rats might also have infested some corn crops and oil palm plantations in the northern parts of the town. “We also received reports that some oil palm plantations and corn crops were attack by rats. However we are still to validate the report since no one from the farmers in the area reported the incident in our office," Nidoy said. The town’s agricultural technologist recommended a massive information campaign on how to control and prevent rat and rice blast infestations. – VVP, GMANews.TV 
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