“Carbon-Wise Rice” Searca Is Promoting – Anti-Climate Change. “Carbon-Wise Rice Grown With Other Crops,” I Am Promoting

Today, with the climate crisis upon us, we have to watch out that we eliminate our carbon footprints! Especially farmers, if you ask me, an agriculturist.

That is why I was intrigued with this news from Searca written by Leander C Domingo: “Searca Senior Fellow Presents Carbon[-]Wise Rice Concept” (31 March 2022, Manila Times, manilatimes.net). It is wise to reduce our carbon footprint, preferably eliminate it altogether!
(carbon footprint from Green Policy 360, greenpolicy360.net)

Mr Domingo quotes Eero Nissila, Finland-based consultant & Searca senior fellow, as saying:

Rice carbon footprint contributes to global GHG [greenhouse gas], methane and agricultural nitrous oxide emissions.

So, as much rice as we plant, as much GHGs we contribute!

Mr Nissila says there are 3 major structural changes that should be made in Southeast Asian agriculture:

1. Technology leap in mechanization and digitalization
2. Farms reorganizing their operations
3. Evolving farm products from traditional to circular bioeconomy-based

Mechanization & Digitalization

Our Department of Agriculture (DA) with its agency PhilMech has been busy innovating equipment and machines for PH Agriculture. But PH DA is not into needs-based digitalization – that I have been loudly advocating since at least 2018 when I said:

“I want digital agriculture knowledge now!”

I said that in my essay “Big Data Beyond EXPLOREit@ICRISAT” (07 Sept 2018, Creative Thinkering, Blogspot.com).

I don’t see any problem Digitalizing Agriculture. Lack of expertise is a bad excuse for not digitalizing – all my digital skills today I taught myself starting when I was already 45 years old.

Pertinently in 2003, on my own, I produced a digital 198-page book, The Geography Of Knowledge, dedicated to internetizing agriculture. I was PhilRice consultant for the Open Academy for Philippine Agriculture(OpAPA), the OpAPA proposal submitted to PhilRice by then-Director General of India-based ICRISAT William Dar, the same who is the current PH Secretary of Agriculture.

That is to say, Frank A Hilario wrote the book on the digitalization of PH Agriculture 19 years ago!

Farms Reorganizing Their Operations

Mr Dar has conceptualized OneDA and been leading the DA and attached agencies towards clustering farmer operations within a farmers group, or several groups, or within cooperatives. This is for economies of scale.

Traditional Vs Biotech Farm Products

If by “bioeconomy” is meant the use of biotechnology to produce farm products – not interested. I prefer biological products, not genetically manipulated, grown by natural or organic farming methods.

Nissila also says:

Carbon[-]Wise Rice is produced with minimal emission from the soil, optimal use of fertilizers, proper water management, use of the most suitable varieties, and use of renewable energy.

“Optimal use of fertilizers” – that refers to chemicalfertilizers, which are greenhouse gas-hustlers. In the worldwide war against Climate Change, as a self-anointed Apostleof Regenerative Agriculture, I advocate instead the maximal use of organic fertilizers.

Multiple Crops

We have to be carbon-wise as well as crop-wise to be business-wise: With multiple crops collectively guarding against harmful organisms – pesticides eliminated:

Healthy foods for villagers, healthy pockets for farmers – What more could we ask for?!@517