Department of Agriculture Projects 1.1% Increase in Rice Production for Q1

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ByJi-hyun

At the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon briefing, Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. stated that the Department of Agriculture (DA) projected around a 1.1% increase in rice production for the first quarter of the year. He said that contrary to the March 2024 forecast of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the incremental increase would help lower import volumes.

According to Laurel, the total production is expected to reach about 4.78 million metric tons (MT). “Our palay for the first quarter will increase by) 1.1 percent compared to last year. So, the total production should reach about 4.78 million metric tons (MT) because of the dry season,” he said.

In contrast, the USDA projected a 4.1 million MT import volume this year, which the DA chief described as a “worst-case scenario.”

Laurel was optimistic that the Philippines would not have to reach that level. To him, rice production seemed to be fine despite the phenomenon. He stated, “If you may recall 2022, the imports statistics is 3.8 million; last year it went down to 3.5 million metric tons. So, I think, hopefully, we will not reach 4 million metric tons this year since production seems to be okay even with El Niño.”

The El Niño phenomenon in the Philippines has left PHP 2.63 billion worth of agricultural loss so far, with the highest damage accounted for rice worth PHP 1.72 billion.

Laurel assures that the efforts of the DA to procure the country’s rice buffer stock through the National Food Authority (NFA) remain uncompromised. “We are managing with our limited resources and manpower. The NFA is being managed well as of the moment,” he said.

In an earlier interview, Laural said that operations of 97 NFA warehouses are still suspended amid the ongoing probe into the alleged questionable selling of rice buffer stocks to select traders. Despite the investigation, Laurel assured that farmers may continue to sell their harvested palay to the NFA.

The NFA’s buying price is tagged at PHP 23 per kilogram, lower than the average buying price of traders at PHP 27/kg to PHP 30/kg. The NDA must secure around 300,000 metric tons of rice for the national buffer stock.

Hailing from California, USA. Ji-hyun is a Korean American 🇰🇷🇺🇸 with two growing boys who eat their weight in rice each week. After graduating UCLA & becoming a mom she started We Know Rice as a guide for all the students and moms out there looking to cook healthy and filling meals.