By means of Justine Irish D. Table, Reporter
The Department of Agriculture (DA) said on Monday that palay (unmilled rice) production has likely declined this year due to the damage caused by El Niño-induced droughts and several strong typhoons.
“We can expect production to be lower compared to last year due to the enormous damage caused by El Niño and the series of typhoons even before Kristine,” DA Deputy Secretary and Spokesperson Arnel V. de Mesa told reporters during a brie .Fing.
The department previously estimated that Palay production would fall to 19.41 million tonnes (MT) in 2024, down 3.24% from 20.06 million tonnes in 2023.
Mr De Mesa said the main rice producing regions and areas of the country are:Fhit by the severe tropical storm Kristine.
“With Kristine, even though we have advised early harvesting, there are still areas that cannot be harvested and that have been left behind. So we are seeing enormous damage to agriculture nationwide,” he said.
“We will know later how extensive the damage is. But production will decline, especially in rice production.”
A report from the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) showed on Monday that severe Tropical Storm Kristine and Typhoon Leon caused €5.9 billion in damage to agriculture.
Mr De Mesa said damage from tropical cyclones this year is already higher than the annual average of 500,000 tonnes to 600,000 tonnes.
“The damage is slightly higher this year, more than the regular losses we expect,” he added.
Citing the reviews of DA Regional Field OffAs of November 2, Mr De Mesa said that agricultural damage and crop losses due to Kristine have so far amounted to 5.75 billion euros.
“The greatest damage is recorded in the rice subsector with EUR 4.25 billion, followed by high-value crops (harvests) with EUR 847 million, while Fisheries recorded a production loss of P403 million,” he said.
“The highest damage was recorded in the Bicol region with almost P3 billion, followed by Mimaropa with P746 million, and the third is in Cagayan Valley with P621 million,” he added.
The prosecutor said that Kristine was aFaffected 131,661 farmers and Fisher population covering 109,871 hectares of crops, resulting in 557,851 tons of production loss.
Earlier this year, El Niño caused droughts and dry spells that aFinfected crops in parts of the country. In his Flatest bulletin on the eFAs a result of El Niño, the prosecutor said agricultural damage and losses in 15 regions were estimated at $15.3 billion.
Agricultural production fell by 3.3% in the second quarter to 413.91 billion euros, a deterioration compared to the 1.2% contraction a year earlier.Fabout the impact of El Niño.
For the Ffirst half, the value of agricultural production and FEconomies fell 1.5%, a reversal from 0.4% growth a year ago.
The figures for agricultural production for the third quarter will be announced on Wednesday.
Asked for comment, Raul Q. Montemayor, national manager of the Federation of Free Farmers, said he expects a single-digit decline in production this year after dismal production in the first half.
“I think it will still be in the single digits as harvests seem to be good in areas not badly affected by the typhoons,” Mr Montemayor said in a Viber message.
“But our offer is theFThe ICIT will continue to rise due to the decline in production coupled with the increase in demand or population,” he added.
Mr Montemayor said production is likely to decline in the second half due to the eFconsequences of the typhoons.
“So overall we are looking at a decline in annual production,” he added.
Despite the expected decline, Mr De Mesa said rice supplies will be sufficientffiient with the increased imports.
“Even if there is a decline, the good thing is that it will be supplemented by our import supply. By mid-October, the harvest has already reached 3.6 million tons, almost exceeding last year’s total imports,” he added.
He said they expect rice imports to be cheaper because of the reduced tariffsFfs on rice and India’s lifting of its ban on milled rice exports.
“Hopefully the peso exchange rate will improve so that the price of imported rice will also fall further. Because this will ensure that we have sufficient supply and that prices will not be too highFinfected,” he added.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture expects Philippine rice imports to reach 4.7 million tons this year.