Agriculture Secretary Luis Lorenzo Jr. said the growth will be achieved because of anticipated higher yields in corn-producing areas like Ilocos, Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Northern and Central Mindanao, and the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao.
An earlier forecast said there would be a decline in production area due to the El Niño weather disturbance characterized by prolonged dry spell.
Citing data furnished by the Bureau of Agriculture Statistics and the DA corn program under director Artemio Salazar, Lorenzo said total area planted to corn was expected to shrink 1.27 percent to 950,919 hectares (has.) in the first six months of this year from 963,197 has. in the same period of 2002.
The reduction was expected because many farmers shifted to other crops like sugar. Others, especially corn growers in hilly areas, have abandoned their fields and decided not to replant in anticipation of drought induced by El Niño.
Despite the lower hectarage, yield is seen to improve by seven percent to 2.15 tons per hectare from 2.01 tons.
Salazar said farmers are slowly becoming more productive this year due to their shift to hybrid corn varieties, minimal pest infestation, efficient fertilizer use, and good weather.
And to make local corn more competitive with those produced by other countries, the agriculture department is implementing various strategies aimed at increasing yield to three to five tons per hectare while reducing post-harvest losses by use of mechanical, instead of solar driers.
Part of the intervention is to enable corn farmers to earn at least P17,000 per hectare per year from the current P10,000-12,000, and to establish a grains highway that will reduce the transport and distribution cost of Mindanao-based farmers in bringing their produce to Luzon.
Two-thirds of the country’s annual 4.5 million yellow corn production comes from Mindanao while 53 percent of this output is consumed in Luzon, mostly by the poultry and livestock industry.