A SENIOR agriculturist has urged rice farmers to make greater use of certified seed for cultivation to help reach the government’s target of 100 baskets of paddy an acre.

Every year 150,000 baskets of registered seed are distributed by the Myanma Agriculture Service (MAS) to cooperative farmers, who can replant them to produce a total of six million baskets of certified seed.

This amount of seed can be sold to other farmers, who can use it to produce enough seed to grow 4.5 million acres of good-quality paddy.

However, the general manager of the MAS Seed Division, Dr Min Aung, said most farmers did not consider using certified seed even though it would considerably improve their yields.

He said that lack of awareness among farmers of the benefits of using certified seed resulted in low demand and consumption of only one-half of the available seed, which causes shortages in the following year’s crop.

Dr Min Aung said that educating farmers about the benefits of the seed will lead to increased demand from producers, which will be followed by an increased number of certified seed growers.

He said production from just half of the certified seed can total about 130 million baskets of good-quality seed.

However, the consumption by farmers of certified seed is a great waste as it has the capacity to produce a much greater quantity of good quality seed if it is replanted for cultivation, he said.

More than 14 million acres of monsoon paddy is grown in Myanmar, some of it using grain instead of seed, and the private sector in cooperation with agriculturalists must step in and provide seed to all farmers, Dr Min Aung said.

He said using high-yield seed varieties increases production by up to 20 per cent and also results in higher quality paddy that will allow farmers to charge higher prices.

He said 37 high-yield varieties and seven targeted-yield varieties are being used that can produce more than 100 baskets an acre.

Dr Min Aung said MAS will intensify its program to educate farmers in the wider use of certified seed and registered seed distribution.