- Nueva Ecija villages under state of calamity due to worm infestation
- The five villages include Barangays Dolores, Concepcion, San Francisco, San Agustin and San Fabian
- Damages include P125 million worth of crops and a total damage of nearly 450 hectares of land planted to crops
Five villages in Nueva Ecija have been declared under a state of calamity following the damages brought about by army worms that infested the onion crops.
An article published by the Manila Bulletin indicated that the army worms infested onion crops in Nueva Ecija worth P125 million leaving a total damage of almost 450 hectares of crops.
The Department of Agriculture (DA) Region 3 Field Office disclosed on March 29 that the army worms infested the young leaves of onions causing damage to the crops planted by the farmers of Nueva Ecija.
As recommended by the Municipal Risk Reduction and Management Council (MDRRMC), Mayor Leonido De Guzman immediately declared the five barangays in Sto. Domingo town under a state of calamity.
The affected towns include barangays Dolores, Concepcion, San Francisco, San Agustin, and San Fabian.
DA Region 3 Director Andrew Villacorta said his office has ordered the field officers to look into the affected areas to assess and control the damage caused by the infestation.
Based on March 10 market price of P29 a kilo, the damages rendered a total loss of P125,533,750 due to infestation.
Nueva Ecija provincial agriculturist Serafin Santos, said that 346.30 hectares of the 474.50 hectares planted with red creole onion in the municipality was totally damaged by the army worms infestation monitored last February.
He said these army worms were “hatched by a certain kind of butterfly inside and quickly ate up the young leaves of onion.”
Of the initial damaged areas, Barangay Dolores had the largest at 187.40 ha (253 farmers affected); followed by San Fabian, 46.80 ha (65 farmers); Concepcion, 44.80 ha (76 farmers); San Francisco, 39.40 ha (61 farmers); and San Agustin, 28 ha (40 farmers).
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