Agriculture production down 1.5% in Q2

MANILA, Philippines — The country’s agricultural output remained on a downward trend in the second quarter as lower production in the livestock and fisheries sectors outweighed gains in crops and poultry.

Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed that the value of production in local agriculture declined by 1.5 percent to P435.6 billion in the second quarter of the year. This was a reversal of the 0.5 percent growth recorded in the same period last year.

The decline was largely due to the 19.3 percent reduction in livestock production, which accounted for 14.2 percent of the total agriculture production.

PSA data showed that hog production continued to drop in the second quarter by 26.2 percent.

Fisheries output, which contributed 16.1 percent to the total agricultural production, also dropped by 1.1 percent due to double digit declines in the production of yellowfin tuna by 34.9 percent and roundscad or galunggong by 18.3 percent, among others.

Meanwhile, crops, which accounted for 56.2 percent of the total agricultural production, increased by 3.1 percent. This was largely driven by palay (unhusked rice) and corn production, which rose by 1.2 percent and 6.3 percent, respectively.

Similarly, poultry production, which accounted for 13.5 percent of the total agricultural production, posted a 2.5 percent increase driven by higher production of duck, chicken eggs and duck eggs, with duck registering the largest gain at 38.4 percent.

At current prices, agriculture production was valued at P503.3 billion, up 7.2 percent year on year. This brought the total value of agriculture production in the first half to P991.6 billion, eight percent higher than the previous year’s P917.4 billion.

The value of crop production at current prices registered a 5.2 percent increase in the first six months to P537.6 billion.

The value of livestock production amounted to P167.7 billion, up 14.5 percent, while the value of poultry production grew 12 percent to P139.2 billion.

Fisheries production was valued at P147 billion, representing an increase of 8.3 percent.

“The Q2 results show a resilient agriculture amid the Covid 19 pandemic and African swine fever,” Agriculture Secretary William Dar said in a Viber message to The STAR.

He said the Department of Agriculture (DA) would intensify its services and agricultural interventions for fishers and farmers in the remaining months of the Duterte administration.

Among these efforts include intensifying its Plant, Plant, Plant program; upscaling urban agriculture, putting up more Kadiwa stores, engaging more youth in agripreneurship and updating the commodity industry roadmaps.

The DA will also strengthen partnerships with the state unvirsities and colleges in research and development, scale up digital agriculture and complete big ticket infrastructure projects.