Aguinaldo, Ifugao – Following the first round of corn derby in Tabuk City, Kalinga, another round of the event was held from October 4 to 7 in Barangay Posnaan, Aguinaldo, Ifugao.
Corn Derby, which was launched in the Cordillera in 2020, is a program of the Department of Agriculture – Cordillera which serves as a competition for the yield performance of corn varieties participating in said event.
Aside from their yield performance, their resistance to drought, pests, and diseases is also being considered, thus giving the farmers the opportunity to reach informed decisions in choosing varieties they might prefer to plant.
The event, according to the Municipal Agricultural Office of Aguinaldo, also serves as a basis for the Corn Program Unit for the procurement of seeds to be distributed to the farmers under its production and extension support services.
In the corn derby conducted in Aguinaldo, Syngenta Philippines with their NK6130 variety which is also the winner during the corn derby in Tabuk bested 15 other corn seed varieties as it was adjudged as the winner for the ‘Masaganang Ani at Mataas na Kita Award’ yielding 11.4 MT/ha.
Syngenta also generated an estimated income of P220,000.
Next to Syngenta is DK9118S variety of Bayer Crop Science, yielding an estimate of 9.9 MT/ha and generating an estimated P191,500 income while Corteva Agri science’s Pioneer 3585YHR variety ranked third, with a yield of 9.6 MT/ha and an income of P186,000.
Meantime, Bayer with their variety DK8282S topped the Farmers’ Choice Awards followed by Syngenta Philippines variety NK6130 and Bayer Crop Science’s DK9118S.
During the event, DA-Cordillera said the farmers were encouraged to adapting precision farming.
“This is the precise and timely application of an exact amount of fertilizers and other agricultural materials for the crops to mature accordingly using modern ways and technology, depending on the crop, soil, terrain and such,” DA-Cordillera wrote.
Meantime, corn farmer Julie Ann Mabini expressed gratitude to the project as the corn derby taught her that there are still a lot of farm practices farmers could improve and even change for better yield.
“Nu anya man dagidiay na-practice mi idi, mabalin mi pay ma-improve or mabaliwan. Uray dagidiay planting distance, haan tayo maiwasan basta tukit-tukit ladtan,” she said during an interview by the agricultural department.
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