Department of Agriculture Undersecretary for Rice Industry Development Leocadio Sebastian on Sunday assured the public there’s enough rice in the market for all Filipinos.

Sebastian said government inventory indicated that 1.4 million tons of rice are still available in warehouses across the country. These are aside from the rice harvest in the coming lean months of June and July.

The DA official tried to assuage fears of a supply lack of the staple grain as the department pushed farmers to use biofertilizers that are cheaper than synthetic or inorganic fertilizers.

“We want to lower their production cost because of the high prices of synthetic fertilizers,” Sebastian said in urging a shift to biofertilizers.

He also expressed concern about the effects of the wanton use of commercial fertilizers like diminishing soil fertility that results in lesser yield and lower palay quality.

“We’re encouraging farmers to make use of ‘balanced fertilization,” he said, explaining that biofertilizers are made of micro-organism that gives the soil the right nutrients to be fertile.

Biofertilizers abound, according to Sebastian, with around 70 registered brands to choose from, 38 of which are good for palay and can also be bought at half the price of synthetic fertilizers that make the soil “acidic.”

“The other biofertilizers available are good for planting fruits and vegetables,” Sebastian explained.

“We wanted to promote biofertilizer and the so-called balanced fertilization where you mixed the organic fertilizer, biofertilizer, and the inorganic — combined. This will give back our soil fertility,” he said.