Reflections on the Human Condition - Api-fellowships.org

290 SESSION IV
state arm to provide low-interest loan to farmers. Among
five objectives of the “Grain Highway”, one says Bt corn
will be used to increase the length of period of planting
windows for corn production; thereby promoting corn
supply to the market for the whole years. Because of the
infestation of corn borers, Many Filipino corn farmers
stop growing corn during rainy season.
The “Grain Highway” gives an incentive to farmers
who join the program by providing them production
financing of maximum Php15,000/ha, post harvest
facility financing with a maximum term of seven years
repayment, and working capital credit.
Although the program wanted to promote Bt corn, in
its first annual report there is no information about the
Bt corn.
The incentive program of the government and the
marketing strategy of seeds companies, once come
together, could be a driving force for farmers to “choose”
to plant Bt corn since their choice becomes smaller.
THE REDUCTION OF PESTICIDE
CONSUMPTION: A FOLK TALE FROM SEEDS
COMPANIES
One of the several promises of Bt corn is to reduce the
use of pesticides since Bt corn contains genes of bacteria
that could release its toxic to kill corn borer once it
attacks the corn. However, corn borer is not the only
pest that has threatened Filipino corn farmers.
Charito Medina, an entomologist from UP Open
University of Philippines, 15 said corn has about 10 pests,
Asian corn borer is just one of them. The infestation of
the about 10 pests is not on the same year. During the
past three years, said Dr. Medina, grass hopper has been
a big problem not the corn borer.
“It might be true that there is no need for farmers to
spray pesticides for corn borer. But, how about other
pests? Insecticide is still sprayed over the Bt corn to
protect the corn field from other pests,” he says.
A report of GMA Corn Program said grass hopper is a
major threat to corn farmers in the last three years.
Medina was also supported by many farmers including
Bebot, a seed supplier from Santo Nino, who tested
the Bt corn on one hectare of his farm land in South
Cotabato province in 2004.
“It does resist to corn borer. I proved it myself. However,
Ref lections on the Human Condition: Change, Conflict and Modernity
The Work of the 2004/2005 API Fellows
it can not resist other pests including grass hoppers that
I still have to apply chemical to prevent the attack of
other pests. The yielding also depends on how much
you use fertilizers. The only good thing of Bt corn is that
it can resist to corn borer,” he says during the interview
at his shop. Although the seed resists to corn borer, as
claimed by the company, Salvacion Fabulare, a treasurer
of Landan co-operative which once provided Bt corn
seeds to its member farmers, noticed that the pesticides
farmers used in their Bt corn field are not different from
those they applied for non-Bt corn field. The production
cost of Bt corn is a little higher than non Bt, particularly
local corn seed varieties which some farmers are still
planting. According to Salvacion, pesticides used to
eradicate corn borers is the same pesticides farmers used
to control other species of pests.
Table 3 shows details of the production cost of three
varieties of corn. The table, analysed by Salvacion from
the record of the co-op shows that the expense farmers
paid for pesticides for Bt corn is the exactly same
amount they spent for non-Bt corn field.