Palay production up 2.3%

The Philippines produced 18.44 million metric tons of palay in 2013, a new record that exceeded by 2.3 percent the previous one set in 2012, according to the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics.

The BAS said in a report that the harvest volume improved in most regions in the country, except those that were heavily affected by typhoons.

“The significant (increase in output) in some regions has offset the losses incurred in regions affected by the series of typhoons in the second half of the year,” the agency said.

Also, the BAS said the rice yield rose because of the increase in the use of hybrid and high-yield seeds as well as fertilizer, enough water supply, and lesser occurrence of pests and diseases.

In addition, output gains were attributed to the expansion in the harvest area and improvement in yield, particularly in Central Luzon, Caraga, Soccsksargen, Bicol and the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

Overall, nationwide harvest area grew by 1.2 percent to 4.75 million hectares, while yield expanded by one percent to 3.89 MT per hectare.

For the first half of 2014, the BAS forecasts a 5.4-percent rise in palay output to 8.43 million MT.

In the same period, harvest area is expected to expand by 3.7 percent to 2.12 million hectares, while yield may go up by 1.7 percent to 3.9 MT per hectare.

Earlier, agriculture officials expected flat growth in the production of palay because of the weather disturbances last year.

Last December, Alcala said the goal to attain full rice self-sufficiency this year would not be attained and that the sufficiency level ranged from 97 percent to 98 percent.

The agriculture chief said the government would review its food self-sufficiency program (FSSP) after it failed to reach its targets in 2013.

“The FSSP targets need to be fine-tuned and reviewed because of the magnitude of flooding and storms that hit the country in the past few years,” Agriculture Secretary Proceso J. Alcala said in an interview.

“Earlier projections, when the FSSP was conceptualized, might not be reasonable given the current situation,” he added.