Philippines' 11 of 16 regions to register palay-production cuts in Q2

OF the 16 major rice-producing areas in the Philippines, 11 regions will suffer production cuts in the second quarter of the year, according to the survey conducted by the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics (BAS). In its May round of “Rice and Corn Situation Outlook,” the attached agency of the Department of Agriculture (DA) noted that Western Visayas will suffer the biggest decline in paddy -rice production at 60 percent to 75,225 metric tons (MT). The BAS noted that the second-biggest production decline will be posted by Calabarzon at 37 percent to 75,746 MT. Of the 11 regions that will register slashes in production, the Zamboanga Peninsula will suffer the least as paddy-rice production could go down by only 4.7 percent year-on-year to 54,510 MT. “Insufficient water supply from irrigation and rains due to El Niño resulted in unrealized planting intentions,” said the BAS in its report. For the April-to-June period, the BAS forecasted a contraction in area harvested by 6.2 percent and a drop in yield by 3.4 percent year-on-year. Other regions that will suffer paddy-rice production declines during the period include the Cordillera Autonomous Region, Ilocos, Cagayan Valley, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, Bicol, Central Visayas and Soccsksargen. The agency noted that palay production for April to June could decline by 9.4 percent year-on-year to 3.11 million metric tons (MMT). For January to September, paddy-rice production is expected to contract by almost 1 MMT to 9.999 MMT from 10.89 MMT registered in the same period last year. Meanwhile, the BAS projected that 12 out of 16 corn-producing regions in the country will also post production declines during the period. Cagayan Valley, one of the major sources of corn in the Philippines, is expected to cut back production by almost 80 percent year-on-year to 70,950 MT. A year ago, the region produced 341,399 MT of corn. Another major source of corn, Soccsksargen is also projected to post a production decline of 42.7 percent year-on-year to 120,942 MT. Corn production for the entire Philippines during April to June will settle at 816,941 MT, lower by 36.83 percent year-on-year, according to the BAS. “Area harvested may contract from 455,000 hectares to 322,000 hectares due to unrealized planting intentions resulting from insufficient water supply. Yield is expected to drop from 2.84 MT per hectare last year to 2.54 MT per hectare this year,” said the BAS. For January to September, the country’s corn production is expected to go down by 17 percent year-on-year to 4.64 MMT. Production of yellow corn, the main ingredient used for animal feeds, is expected to contract by almost 24 percent to 2.96 MMT.