Damage to a major irrigation system in Nueva Ecija is set to cut rice supply early next year, forcing the Department of Agriculture (DA) to pivot tens of thousands of hectares from rice to mung bean production to protect farmer incomes and food supply.

The DA said Wednesday that it is preparing to convert up to 37,000 hectares of rice land as the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) repairs parts of the Upper Pampanga River Irrigation System (UPRIS) damaged by illegal quarrying.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel Jr. said the damage will significantly dent output. 

“This means our rice production early next year will be short by as much as 120,000 metric tons,” he said.

To cushion the impact, the DA and NIA are pushing crop diversification, with mung beans positioned as a faster-growing cash crop.

“The way to manage this situation is to adopt a crop diversification strategy, and both NIA and the DA will jumpstart munggo production to provide additional income for affected farmers, reduce our importation by increasing munggo self-sufficiency, and complement the supply of nutrient-dense food in every community,” Tiu Laurel said.

“Considering that munggo is a basic necessity, the local demand for processing such as munggo hopia, ready-to-eat munggo soup, lumpiang togue shall also be addressed and serves as an opportunity for farmers to diversify their income from this cash crop which is harvested in a shorter time than rice.”

Mung beans mature in about 60 days, allowing farmers to generate income more quickly while irrigation repairs are ongoing.

At average yields of about 0.7 metric tons per hectare in Nueva Ecija and prices of around P70 per kilo, farmers can earn roughly P22,600 per hectare, with higher yields possible from other varieties.

The country imports nearly 50,000 metric tons of mung beans annually, making the crop both a potential buffer against income losses for farmers and an import-substitution opportunity. 

Tiu Laurel noted that tighter import management and improved data—particularly once the Rice App goes live—will be needed to avoid price collapses similar to past cycles, when rice prices fell by P8 to P10 per kilo.

To increase domestic supply, the DA and NIA’s High-Value Crops Development Program plan to expand mung bean farming by an additional 21,000 hectares along NIA-managed irrigation systems.