THE country’s fisheries output fell by 7.5 percent in the third quarter, the lowest level in over two decades, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
Data from the PSA showed that the total volume of fisheries production in the July to September period reached 894,320 metric tons (MT), down from 966,730 MT in the same quarter last year.
Historical data indicated that the latest figures represented the lowest level of fisheries output since the 852,378 MT recorded in the third quarter of 2004.
Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. expects fisheries production to decline this year, noting that the absence of El Niño weighed on the subsector.
‘Our prediction for this year’s fisheries production is definitely lower because last year was an El Niño year,’ Tiu Laurel told reporters on Thursday.
‘Based on my 38 years of experience in the fishing industry, whenever the water is warm, production is always higher,’ he said. ‘Since this year isn’t an El Niño year, production will be lower.’
PSA data indicated that three out of the four subsectors registered contractions last year, with the commercial fisheries subsector being the only one that grew on an annual basis.
The aquaculture subsector, which contributed over half of the total fisheries output, contracted by 12.3 percent to 454,860 MT in the third quarter from the 518,910 MT in the previous year.
The inland municipal fisheries slid by 0.6 percent to 45,990 MT year-on-year from 46,260 MT. It accounted for 5.1 percent of the total output.
For marine municipal fisheries, the output shrank by 9.7 percent to 168,920 MT in the third quarter from 187,130 MT recorded in the previous year. The subsector constituted 18.9 percent of the total fisheries production, based on PSA data.
Meanwhile, commercial fisheries production in the reference period expanded by 4.7 percent to 224,560 MT from 214,430 MT last year. The subsector’s share accounted for 25.1 percent of the total output.
For Philippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food Inc. (PCAFI) President Danilo Fausto, the government should also focus on the fisheries sector.
‘I think the government has focused more on crops, especially rice, and livestock and poultry,’ Fausto told the BusinessMirror.
‘Attention should also be made to our aquaculture, which is supposed to be the competitive advantage of the Philippines, especially on hatchery, logistics, and post-harvest facilities, including ice plant and cold storage facilities,’ he added.