THE country’s farm output grew by 2.8 percent in the third quarter, owing to the absence of adverse weather disruptions.
Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed the value of agriculture and fisheries production reached P408.94 billion in the July to September period, higher than last year’s P397.43 billion.
This marked the third consecutive increment in the farm sector’s performance this year, based on PSA data.
While the fisheries and livestock subsectors contracted, the PSA said the crops and poultry subsectors continued to rise, enough to support the overall performance of the agriculture industry during the reference period.
Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. attributed the farm sector’s growth to the absence of weather-related shocks.
‘Clearly we are heading in the right direction, as things are improving a bit every quarter. We’re having fairly good weather this year, which is helpful,’ Tiu Laurel told reporters on Thursday.
‘Assuming [that the agriculture sector] won’t be severely affected by the upcoming typhoons, the outlook is good,’ he said.
If the growth continues until the last quarter, Tiu Laurel expressed confidence that the overall farm output would land on positive territory in 2025, up from the 2.2 percent decline recorded last year.
PSA data showed crop production in the third quarter, which amounted to P218 billion, grew by 3 percent year-on-year. Rice output posted a double-digit growth at 12.6 percent, while corn production slid by 2.9 percent.
Poultry, which is valued at P75.96 billion, registered an 18.6-percent increase. The production of chicken and chicken eggs recorded an expansion at 12.4 percent and 7.7 percent, respectively.
Tiu Laurel acknowledged that the fisheries subsector slumped in the reference period, while the livestock subsector remains gripped by the effects of African swine fever (ASF), which reduced hog inventory and crimped pork output since it ravaged local farms in 2019.
Based on PSA data, the fisheries subsector reached P54.47 billion in the third quarter, contracting by 2.7 percent year-on-year.
Livestock production amounted to P60.51 billion and dropped by 1.9 percent in the reference period, with the value of hog production recording a 1.4-percent drop.