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Today is :
Archives (2001)
Smallholder rubber
farming system
"no break" in farmers' income
by Mary Charlotte O. Fresco |
July-September
2001
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Rubber planters in the Philippines are predominantly
smallholders. It is estimated that a farmer owns an average
of three to ten hectares of rubber farm. Unlike other crops,
farmers consider rubber as potential crop that provides employment
all year-round, since tapping the trees' latex or sap is done
everyday. However, despite the viable and lucrative livelihood
opportunities offered by rubber farming, there has been no
substantial support given to smallholder farmers to generate
high income during the years when rubber trees are too young
to tap (ex. fourth to sixth year).
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| North Cotabato rubber trees (Photos
from Nick Gonzaga, taken from his website, "The
Rubber Tree"
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In response to these needs, the Philippine Rubber
R&D Center (PhilRubber) in Kabacan, North Cotabato implemented
a project on "Sustainable Rubber-based Farming System
for Smallholders in the Philippines" to ensure a "no
break" in farmers' income. The project involved the adoption
of appropriate cropping systems and crop combination to come
up with technologies for continuous source of income for the
local rubber farmers.
This sustainable cropping system shall maximize
the use of land by simultaneously planting and raising some
fruit trees, forest crops, cereals and upland rice, selected
livestock during the early years of rubber establishment.
It also helps prevent soil erosion and nutrient loss in the
soil since intercropping is applied.
 Through
this farming system, a single farmer can generate an additional
average income ranges from P45, 000 to P80, 000 annually.
According to Dr. Gene Alcala, network leader of National Plantation
Crops RDE, the most important consideration in adopting this
farming system is the careful planning and designing of cropping
system to adopt, the kind of crops and livestock to raise,
and establishment of rubber as the dominant tree crop.
"Not all rubber smallholders can adopt
rubber-based farming technology except those who are full
time and committed farmers engaged in rubber production,"
he added.
Also, in selecting the areas for rubber-based
farming, one should carefully evaluate the conditions like
water system; soils/terrain/topography; kinds and volume of
planting materials; crop suitability; and market channels.
But how do we equip the farmers with adequate
knowledge for him to run such a strategic business enterprise?
A series of formal and informal training program on the basic
operations of rubber-based farming especially crop-husbandry
management; care and maintenance of rubber-based areas; financing
support system; and marketing scheme is conducted for the
farmer-operators. The farmers are familiarized with different
types of crop-livestock combination and cropping pattern that
could give them outmost benefits and returns. The researcher
concluded that cropping methods such as fertilizer application
and tillage applied to food crops have positive effect on
rubber growth. Leguminous crops intercropped with rubber significantly
helped in the production of nitrogen in the soil.
With the full adoption of this kind of integrated
cropping system sustained by continuous technical support
from the government, the future of our smallholder rubber
farmers will stay in top shape. 
(For more information about the potentials
of rubber please contact the Dr. Eugenio A. Alcala, National
team Leader for Plantation Crops RDE Network, Philippine Rubber
Research Center, University of Southern Mindanao, #9407 Kabacan,
Cotabato, Philippines or contact telephone numbers (064) 248-2323
or 248-2517 or e-mail at e_alcala@itdp.usm.edu.ph)
More Articles:
Vol. 3 No. 3 July-September 2001
»»
USM recommends high-yielding rubber clones
»» GMA okays
P2B R&D Fund
»» New
sciences to produce more food
»» Five
cacao clones now ready for farmer use
»» NIRDEAP
for rubber: stretching opportunities for rubber industry
»» Rubber:
the oozing tree
»» Village
processing technologies: approach to solve low production of rubber
»» Smallholder
rubber farming system "no break" in farmers' income
»»
NIRDEAP for coffee: perking up the coffee sector
»» Clonal
propagation in coffee: a promising technology
»» How
to raise healthy cacao seedlings
»» Earning
more from canes
»» Coping
with acidic soils
»» Muscovado:
the promise of the 'other sugar'
»» Rock
candy: a 'tasteful' example of a profitable home business
»» Propagating
cacao by nodal grafting
»»
Making vinegar a business venture
»» The
Philippine coffee industry: a profile
»» Prospects
in cocoa
[More
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