Palay output up 2.3% in 2013

MANILA, Philippines - Palay (unhusked rice) production in 2013 rose 2.3 percent despite the destruction caused by several strong typhoons that visited the country in the second semester of last year.

Data released by the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics (BAS) yesterday showed that unmilled rice production for 2013 reached 18.44 million metric tons (MT), up from the 2012 production level of 18.03 million MT.

Despite the destruction caused by Super Typhoon Yolanda to rice cultivation areas in the Visayas region, production figures were pulled up by significant output gains in Central Luzon, Caraga, Soccsksargen, Bicol and ARMM regions.

BAS attributed the increased production in these regions to the expansion in harvest area and follow-through on the quick turnaround program of the Department of Agriculture which entails five cropings in two years.

The government-established community seed banking program, BAS said, also contributed to the availability of seeds.

Harvest area on the national level expanded 1.2 percent from 4.69 million hectares in 2012 to 4.75 million hectares in 2013.

Palay yield per hectare rose one percent to 3.89 MT from 3.84 MT.

In the last quarter of 2013, palay production reached 7.08 million MT, up 8.2 percent from 6.54 million MT in the same period in 2012.

Harvest area during the last three months of 2013 expanded 7.4 percent to 1.83 million from 1.71 million hectares in the comparative period in 2012.

In the second semester of the 2013, the country was visited by typhoons Santi, Vinta and Yolanda, which all brought significant production losses in palay-cultivation areas.

Palay production in the first semester of 2014 is expected to reach 8.43 million MT, 5.4 percent higher from the  7.99 million MT produced in the same period in 2013.

Harvest area in the first six months of this year may expand to 2.12 million, 3.7 percent higher than 2.04 million hectares last year.

Yield per hectare may improve from 3.91 MT to 3.98 MT.

Based on standing crop, palay production in the first quarter of 2014 may reach 4.53 million MT, higher by 8.5 percent than the 4.17 million produced in the first quarter of 2013.

Harvest area may expand to 1.18 million hectares from 1.11 million hectares in 2013.

Yield per hectare may improve to 3.83 MT in the first quarter of the year from 3.75 MT.

The bulk of the 2014 first quarter harvest is expected to come from western Visayas, Central Luzon, ARMM, Northern Mindanao and Zamboanga Peninsula.

“Harvest area may expand in these regions due to the immediate replanting of damaged areas affected by typhoons Santi and Yolanda, early plantings due to sufficiency of irrigation water and rainfall, utilization of in-fallow areas and availability of quality seeds from the seed banking program,” said BAS.

Corn production in 2013, meanwhile, fell 0.4 percent to 7.38 million MT from 7.1 million MT in 2012 on contraction in harvest area due to insufficient soil moisture in the first half of the year and damage caused by strong typhoons in the second half of the year.

Corn harvest areas contracted to 2.56 million hectares from 2.59 million hectares in 2012. Yield per hectare, however improved from 2.86 MT in 2012 to 2.88 MT in 2013.

In the fourth quarter of 2013, production reached 1.45 million MT, 3.5 percent lower than P1.51 million MT produced in 2012.