The road to higher rice productivity may not lie in working harder, but in farming smarter—a vision that took root with the official launch of Rice Derby 2026 on July 19 in Barangay Gap-ang, Dolores, Eastern Samar.

Spanning 150 hectares, the technology demonstration convened government agencies and private industry partners to apply innovative, climate-resilient, and sustainable rice production technologies under actual field conditions. More than a showcase of agricultural innovations, the initiative gives local farmers the opportunity to see firsthand which technologies can increase yields, lower production costs, and make rice farming more efficient.

The demonstration site involves 200 farmer cooperators who will cultivate their rice fields using various production technologies that will be monitored and evaluated throughout the cropping season.

A key feature of the Rice Derby is the integration of the Adaptive Balanced Fertilization Strategy (ABFS) across the entire demonstration area. By promoting the right nutrient management practices based on soil conditions and crop requirements, the strategy aims to help farmers maximize productivity while minimizing unnecessary fertilizer use, ultimately improving farm profitability and sustainability.

Supporting the initiative are a diverse group of technology providers and government institutions, including 10 hybrid seed companies, 11 biofertilizer companies, 10 soil ameliorant companies, one inorganic fertilizer company, five foliar fertilizer companies, two nanotechnology companies, one drone service provider, the Bureau of Soils and Water Management (BSWM), and the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice).

Department of Agriculture Regional Field Office 8 Regional Executive Director Rodel G. Macapañas said the initiative ultimately seeks to increase farmers produce more rice in a cost-efficient manner while encouraging the adoption of modern farming technologies.

“𝘏𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘺𝘢𝘱 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘯 𝘮𝘢𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘪𝘵𝘰𝘯 𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘢 𝘌𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘯 𝘚𝘢𝘮𝘢𝘳. 𝘎𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘰 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘯 𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘯𝘢 𝘬𝘪𝘵𝘢 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘰𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘯 𝘧𝘢𝘳𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘚𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘪𝘵 𝘱𝘢𝘯𝘶𝘺𝘰 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘯 𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘪𝘵𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘩𝘪𝘵𝘰𝘯 𝘮𝘨𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘨-𝘶𝘮𝘢 𝘩𝘢 𝘮𝘰𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘯 𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘩𝘯𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘨𝘺. 𝘏𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘰𝘵 𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘢 𝘯𝘨𝘢 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘢𝘣-𝘶𝘵𝘢𝘯 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘺𝘢𝘱 𝘯𝘨𝘢 𝘣𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘦 𝘯𝘨𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘨𝘬𝘢𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘢 𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘦 𝘯𝘨𝘢𝘯 𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘺 𝘯𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘺𝘢 𝘯𝘨𝘢 𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘶𝘨𝘶𝘵𝘰𝘮 𝘩𝘢 𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘦,” Dir. Macapañas said.

[Our aspiration is to elevate rice production in Eastern Samar. We want our farmers to transition from traditional to modern farming. That is why we aim to increase farmers’ awareness of modern agricultural technologies. We hope to achieve sufficient food production in the province so that no family in Eastern Samar will go hungry.]

Likewise, Eastern Samar Governor Ralph Vincent Evardone highlighted the value of the Rice Derby in determining which modern technologies can genuinely benefit farmers and contribute to higher rice productivity in the province.

“𝘗𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘢𝘨𝘪 𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘙𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘋𝘦𝘳𝘣𝘺 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘬𝘪𝘵𝘢 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘯 𝘬𝘶𝘯 𝘪𝘯𝘪 𝘣𝘢 𝘯𝘨𝘢 𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘱𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘯𝘨𝘢𝘯 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘢𝘣𝘢𝘨-𝘰 𝘯𝘨𝘢 𝘵𝘦𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘭𝘰𝘩𝘪𝘺𝘢 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘢𝘬𝘢𝘣𝘶𝘭𝘪𝘨 𝘩𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘨𝘱𝘢𝘩𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘢𝘴 𝘩𝘪𝘵 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘬𝘴𝘺𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘯 𝘣𝘶𝘨𝘢𝘴 𝘩𝘢 𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘯 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘺𝘢. 𝘋𝘢𝘬𝘰 𝘨𝘪𝘩𝘢𝘱 𝘪𝘯 𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘢 𝘣𝘶𝘭𝘪𝘨 𝘩𝘢 𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘯 𝘬𝘢𝘺 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘪𝘬𝘪𝘵𝘢 𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘣𝘢 𝘯𝘨𝘢 𝘮𝘨𝘢 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘢𝘣𝘢𝘨-𝘰 𝘯𝘨𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘮𝘢𝘢𝘨𝘪 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘢 𝘮𝘢𝘱𝘢𝘩𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘵𝘰𝘯 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘬𝘴𝘺𝘰𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘯 𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘩𝘢 𝘌𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘯 𝘚𝘢𝘮𝘢𝘳,” Gov. Evardone said.

[Through the Rice Derby, we will be able to determine whether these equipment and modern technologies can help increase rice production in our province. This initiative is a great help because it allows us to evaluate new approaches that can further improve rice productivity in Eastern Samar.]

More than a showcase of agricultural innovations, the Rice Derby serves as a conducive learning ground where farmers can compare technologies under real farming conditions and adopt practices proven to work. By placing farmers at the center of technology validation, the initiative strengthens their capacity to make science-based production decisions, improve yields, and build more resilient and sustainable rice farming practices, anchored on the overarching objective of farmer empowerment and food security.