Nonfood, industrial crop yield mixed in Q1

Production of major nonfood and industrial crops went in different directions in the first quarter of 2022, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).

In a bulletin, the PSA said the country’s coconut output as of March reached 3.2 million metric tons, up by a mere 2 percent from 3.1 million MT year-on-year.

Davao Region was named the leading coconut producer after harvesting 503,806.6 MT. Zamboanga Peninsula came next with 477,205.6 MT.

Abaca fiber output rose by a bigger margin of 14.1 percent to 14,573.83 metric tons from 12,770.62 MT.

Bicol Region was the top abaca fiber producer, accounting for 5,967.5 MT or 40.9 percent of the total output.

Davao Region

Cacao production increased by 6 percent to 2,384.01 MT from 2,249.52 MT. Davao Region remained the country’s top cacao producer with 1,875 MT or 78.7 percent of the total. The same PSA report showed sugarcane production declined by 10.1 percent to 10.46 million MT from 11.63 million MT.

Sugarcane for centrifugal or refined sugar accounted for 98.7 percent of the total while the remaining 1.3 percent came from sugarcane for ethanol, panocha/muscovado and vinegar.

Western Visayas was still the leading producer of sugarcane with 5.31 million MT.

Production of dried coffee berries, meanwhile, dropped by 3.9 percent to 18,597.47 MT from 19,350.32 MT, with robusta still the most produced type as it cornered more than two-thirds of the total output.

Soccsksargen was named the top coffee-producing region with 6,257 MT or 33.6 percent of the total, followed by Northern Mindanao with 2,733.1 MT and Davao Region with 2,352.7 MT.

During the quarter, rubber yield was marginally down by 0.3 percent to 47,336.75 MT from 47,488.13 MT.

Soccsksargen also emerged as the leading rubber-producing region with 19,858 MT while Zamboanga Peninsula came second with 19,202.2 MT.

Meanwhile, farmers produced 9,061.25 MT of dried tobacco leaves in the first quarter, down by a hefty 24.1 percent from 11,931.24 MT in the same period last year.

Virginia tobacco was the most produced variety with a 95.8-percent share, with the remainder coming from native and other tobacco (burley).

Ilocos Region accounted for the majority of tobacco output with 7,850.5 MT while producers from Cordillera Administrative Region harvested 1,025.2 MT.