CAMILING, Tarlac (Jan. 17, 2023) — The province’s premier agricultural institution is developing a system to accurately predict rice yields.
“[The system] allows the government to plan the production, distribution, and consumption of food more effectively, combat food insecurity, and prepare for shortages and supply shocks well in advance,” Tarlac Agricultural Unversity professor, Dr. Amy Lizbeth Rico, said in a statement.
The rice crop advisory system – called Satellite Imagery Crop Monitoring and Forecasting Systems for Agricultural Technology (SICAT) – is being developed by TAU and funded under the Department of Science and Technology’s Regional Grants-in-Aid program.
SICAT is spearheaded by Rico and is aimed to accurately predict the rice yield with a specific field to determine the harvest per region considering that climate change and rapid population growth in the country have brought huge pressure on food demand and production.
Rico and her group are currently validating the rice growth images and other data.