Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 27) — The country’s agricultural output contracted 3.8% in the last three months of 2020 from the same period the previous year as farms produced less livestock, fish and crops during the period, data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority on Wednesday showed.
The last quarter figure brought agricultural output for the entire 2020 down 1.2% from the meager 0.3% growth recorded in 2019.
The October to December drop reflected declines in the production of crops, livestock, poultry, and fisheries. This is worse than the 0.1% contraction logged during the same period in 2019.
However, farm output is valued at ₱503.81 billion, higher by 5% than the previous year’s ₱404.96 billion. PSA data showed average farmgate prices per kilo went up this quarter compared to the same period a year ago.
The latest plunge comes after positive growths from two prior consecutive quarters, with farm output growing 0.5% in the second quarter and 0.7% in the third quarter.
Livestock, which contributed 15.4% in total agricultural output, was the worst hit among all productions, plunging 12.9% during the quarter. Carabao output fell 17.3%, followed by hogs, which slid 13.8%. Cattle and goat livestock also posted declines of 7.6% and 0.8%, respectively. Dairy production, however, expanded 12.7% during the quarter. In sum, livestock was valued at ₱85.27 billion for the period.
Poultry came next in terms of output contraction, dropping 5.5% from October to December. Duck eggs and chicken eggs grew 4.4% and 0.4%, respectively, while duck output expanded 3.7%. However, these weren’t enough to offset the 7.9% drop in chicken output for the quarter. Poultry comprised 12.2% of farm production during the period, logging a total value of ₱69.01 billion.
Fisheries, which churned out 14.5% of agricultural output, fell 4.7%. Fimbrated sardines posted the worst contraction at 35.9%, with production of blue crab, threadfin bream, tiger prawn, tilapia and yellowfin tuna also posting double-digit contractions. Production of “other fisheries” also fell 5.7%, the PSA noted.
Still, Bali sardinella output grew 29.2% during the period along with cavalla, milkfish and bigeye tuna. All in all, these bring output value to ₱74.05 billion.
Crops, the biggest contributor to total farm output at 57.9%, posted the smallest decline at 0.4%. Palay and corn production dropped 1.4% and 0.3%, respectively. Tomato output was also badly hit, logging a negative 7.6% growth. Ampalaya, egpplant, potato, and calamansi production recorded decreases as well along with “other crops,” PSA data showed.
Tobacco and sugarcane, however, led the crops posting growths during the quarter, expanding 13.4% and 10%, respectively. Cacao, sweet potato, onion, coffee, cabbage, rubber, and abaca production also grew during the period, with output for the subsector reaching ₱275.48 billion.
Back-to-back typhoons in October and November inflicted much damage to the agriculture industry, leaving billions of pesos in damages to crops. Before this, farmers had also been dealing with exceptionally low palay prices with the entry of cheap rice imports.
The Agriculture Department has set a 2.5% growth target for the industry in 2021, banking on further integration of technology in agriculture to boost production and further improve delivery of service to beneficiaries along with connectivity.
