Rice farming in East New Britain Province has picked up momentum with increased production by farmer groups in the districts of Kokopo and Pomio.
The provincial food crops program officer with the Division of Agriculture and Livestock (DAL), Shilla Sato said Kokopo is leading in production with 25 hectares of rice farms within the rural wards of Marambu and Ganai and other neighbouring wards of Bitapaka LLG.
Melkoi LLG in Pomio is the second largest producer together with Sinivit LLG, also in the Pomio District.
Though rice is becoming expensive to buy at the shops, it has become a staple food in almost every family household.
Ms Sato said apart from rice farming in institutions like schools and the Kerevat Correctional Institution, rice farming is being encouraged under the rice program in the province.
“Although it is labour intensive, the provincial government is looking at assisting with machinery and equipment because the national government has already discussed a reduction on imports of products such as rice,” she said.
“If rice can grow in Melkoi, Sinivit and Bitapaka LLGs, it can be grown anywhere in East New Britain because we are blessed with fertile volcanic soil.”
She further commended the Deep Deen Plantation management in Sinivit LLG who have planted about 4 hectares of rice and have harvested their second batch, totalling 21 by 50 kilograms or over a tonne of bags.
Plantation supervisor Eddie Kalwa said after getting advice from OISCA Rabaul International on rice farming, they decided to get seeds from the provincial DAL office and started planting last October.
“We had the first harvest already for the ones we planted in October and now is the second harvest where we will bring to Bitapaka LLG to mill them,” he explained.
Kalwa said they are planting ‘Jasmine’ and ‘White Finch’ varieties and are enjoying their harvest as subsistence farmers and also selling surplus for additional income.
For those wanting rice seeds and technical assistance, Ms Sato said the seeds are free and can be collected at the DAL headquarters in Kokopo and from the district and LLG Rural Development Officers (RDO).
“Youths who are doing nothing and want to get into rice farming, come and see us at the PHQ or at your district and LLGs to get assistance,” she outlined.
She also advised that the province will go into proper packaging of the locally produced rice.
“This year, we will invite NISIT, which is the National Institute of Standards and Industrial Technology, to come and certify an area or building in the province where we can do packaging, so that it meets standards. We have also come up with a label for the locally produced rice, which will be called Rabaul Sweet Rice. The locally produced rice should be available at the Kokopo market by mid this year,” she said.