’14 palay output seen rising by 2.4%

Philippine palay output is expected to reach 18.88 million tons in 2014, up by 2.4 percent from the previous year’s volume but 1 percent short of the 19.07 million-ton target.

According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, the projected year-on-year increase in production was due to the increase in the average farm yield to 3.98 tons per hectare from 3.89 tons in 2014.

The PSA said the improved yield was expected to offset an anticipated 0.05-percent contraction in the harvest area to 4.74 million hectares from 4.75 million hectares.

In the fourth quarter of 2014 alone, the agency forecasts a 5.5-percent increase in harvest, with standing crop indicating an output of 7.47 million tons.

For the October-December period, the harvest area is seen expanding by 2.2 percent to 1.87 million hectares and yield may rise 3.3 percent to 3.99 tons per hectare.

“Probable production may increase in Central Luzon, Western Visayas, Mimaropa, Bicol, Zamboanga Peninsula and Davao Region,” the PSA said.

The PSA also said that an improvement in yield was expected due to increased usage of hybrid and certified seeds as well as the distribution of free fertilizer as part of the Bicol Rehabilitation Assistance for areas that were adversely affected by Typhoon “Glenda.”

Last October, the Food and Agriculture Organization said the Philippines’ palay output was projected to decline for the first time in five years by one percent to settle at 18.6 million tons.

By volume, the reduction is expected at 10.3 million tons of palay, which is equivalent to seven million tons of milled rice.

The FAO said in its Rice Market Monitor report that the forecast assumed that the wet-season harvest would be about the same as 2013 volume.

Even then, “the final outcome of the season will depend on the rainfall performance in the coming months, which will in turn determine the availability of water for irrigation of off-season crops,” the agency said.

The Department of Agriculture is aiming for rice harvests to reach 59.7 million tons in the three years to 2016 to achieve self-sufficiency in the production of the staple grain.

According to the DA, the target harvest for 2014 is pegged at 19.07 million tons, for 2015 20.09 million tons and for 2016 20.52 million tons.