CV corn production meets 50% of demand
Despite the increase in production of white corn in
Data from the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics has shown that white corn production has generally increased from 183,643 metric tons last year to 199,420 metric tons this year, but DA-7 said these are not enough to meet the region’s consumption of 316,034 metric tons.
The total production came from four provinces in the Region 7 that cultivated white and yellow corn over an estimated 246,902 hectares.
Grace Len Dagala, DA-7 acting information officer, however confirmed that the combined production could only cover 55.82 percent of the region’s demand.
In the case of Siquijor province, the picture was different, Dagala said. The province has a population of less than a million and its total production of 6,242 metric tons of white corn is 66.38 percent sufficient to meet the demand there, she said.
Dagala also said that the deficit in the supply of white corn viz a viz the demand had caused an increase in the product’s wholesale price from P22.50 per kilo on the first week of March to P27.50 within the week.
DA-7 regional executive director Ricardo Oblena already directed regional and provincial corn program coordinators to raise the inventory of corn and brace for the planting season this month by buying 900 bags of certified open-pollinated white corn varieties to cover 900 hectares of corn land the region.
The planting of certified seeds is one strategy to increase corn yield, Dagala said, adding that the DA-7 had also moved for technical help with the distribution of 25 corn ‘shellers” to farmers associations, as a means of minimizing losses during the harvest season.
Dagala said that corn “shellers” will be given to farmers cooperatives or associations in corn cluster areas in the region through the local governments under a 50:50 cost-sharing scheme. — Ferliza C. Contratista/RAE
- Latest
- Trending
