Farm growth up 3.3% in Q1

MANILA, Philippines – The country’s agriculture sector posted a growth of 3.3% in the first quarter of 2013, according to a repot released by the Department of Agriculture’s Bureau of Agriculture Statistics (BAS) on Friady, May 10. 

The BAS said the farm sector’s growth was higher than the 1.31% growth in the first quarter of 2012. The sector grossed P352.5 billion at current prices. 

“An upward trend was noted in the crops subsector. Livestock and poultry production grew, but, at slower rates. The fisheries subsector recovered from last year’s negative growth and posted the highest growth rate among the subsectors,” the BAS said. 

Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said the higher palay and corn harvest during the quarter were due to early planting, adequate supply of irrigation, higher average yields as a result of increased use of hybrid and certified rice seeds, hybrid and open pollinated varieties of corn seeds, and increase in cultivation areas.  

“Our efforts are paying off, and we hope to attain our sufficiency targets by year-end,” Alcala said. “For these achievements, we thank our country’s farmers and fishers for their continuous hard work and perseverance, and strong cooperation of local government units and the private sector.”

Crop production remained as the main growth driver of agriculture growth. The sector posted a growth 3.62% in the first quarter of 2013, higher than the 0.83% growth it posted in the same period in 2012. 

However, the BAS said that at current prices, the subsector only grossed P192.4 billion, lower by 1.42% from the same period in 2012. 

The main contributors in crop production were palay and corn which came up with production increments of 4.45% and 11.43%, respectively. 

“Early planting activities were observed, particularly, in Cagayan Valley and this was in anticipation of the El Niño phenomenon this year,” the BAS report stated.

In terms of livestock, the BAS said the subsector only posted a growth of 0.32% in the January to March period in 2013, slower than the 3.13% growth in the same period in 2012.

The subsector accounted for 15.33% of total agricultural production. It grossed P54.3 billion at current prices, a 9.07% growth over 2012. 

“There were fewer stocks available for slaughter in Cagayan Valley, Ilocos Region and Caraga. These regions were still building up their stocks in preparation for the May festivities and election period,” the BAS explained.

The fisheries subsector, which took one of the biggest hits because of the Philippines’ conservation efforts in the first quarter of 2012, recovered with a growth of 5.6% in the January to March period in 2013. 

One of growth drivers in this subsector was the lifting of ban for tuna fishing in the Pacific Seas, which sent the country’s Yellow fin tuna production growth surging to 25.39% in the first quarter. 

“There were more unloadings of yellowfin tuna for canneries by foreign fishing vessels due to lifting of the tuna ban in the Pacific Seas. In addition, there were bigger volumes of fish unloadings due to lesser occurrence of strong winds which resulted in more fishing trips during the period in Eastern Visayas and ARMM,” the BAS said. – Rappler.com