Farm sector grows 4% in 2017

MANILA, Philippines — The agriculture industry bounced back in 2017, growing by 3.97 percent amid improvements in most sub-sectors.

This was a turnaround from the 1.4 percent decline in 2016, based on the latest report of the Philippine Statistics Authority. 

The growth, however, is still short of the government’s target of five percent.

For the fourth quarter alone, the industry expanded by 2.2 percent despite the typhoons that hit the country at the tail end of 2017.

“We are happy (with the growth) but not that much because we missed our target. But I think that is encouraging and it could only mean one thing, that we are on the right direction,” Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Pinol told The STAR.

“We saw a more favorable climate and more favorable political support from our local counterparts last year,” he said.

Economist Pablito Villegas, however,  said the growth in the agriculture sector was not enough to make a significant contribution to boost the economy.

“This is still considered as marginal growth given the very high poverty situation in the countryside and in the rural areas. If  agriculture is growing at that pace, it will not make any positive contribution to this administration’s economic growth target of seven to eight percent,” Villegas said.

“We really have to review and study our policies to have inclusiveness in the entire value chain,” he added.

The agricultural sector grossed P1.71 trillion in 2017, up nine percent year on year.

Crops, which accounted for the bulk of total agricultural production, went up by 6.69 percent with palay (unhusked rice) increasing by nine percent and corn harvest by 10 percent.

Palay production increased to 19.3 million metric tons (MT) while corn production went up to 7.9 million MT.

According to PSA, the increment can be attributed to the increase in area harvested in major producing areas due to sufficient water supply during the cropping period and the recovery from the damages caused by the series of typhoons in 2016.

There was also expansion in harvest areas. The higher yields were attributed to the availability of quality hybrid seeds and adequate water supply during the planting months.

Production gains were also noted among the major crops particularly coconut, sugarcane, bananas, and pineapples, among others.

The crop sub-sector grossed P965 billion, up 10 percent year-on-year.

Livestock production, which comprised 18 percent of the aggregate output, inched up 1.1 percent. Gross earnings rose 13 percent to P292 billion.

PSA said the increase was due to higher demand from consumers and local meat processors and the bigger volume of disposals of stocks in some areas.

Poultry likewise increased 4.62 percent, representing 15 percent of the total agricultural output. Despite the incident of bird flu in the third quarter, the emergence of new commercial farms and expansion of existing ones contributed to the growth of this sub-sector. Gross earnings increased by six percent to P215 billion.

The fisheries sub-sector, which made up 16 percent of total farm output, declined 1.73 percent in volume but value increased by six percent to settle at P244 billion.

The decrease was due to heavy siltation in the marine cages in some areas, poor quality fingerlings and the effects of changes in weather conditions.

Average farm-gate prices went up five percent with price gains recorded in all sub-sectors.