March 4, 2011
 

Philippine corn output may hike by 11%

The Philippine Department of Agriculture (DA) projects an 11-percent increase in corn production this year to seven million tonnes due to good weather.

According to DA Assistant Secretary and concurrent national rice and corn program director Dennis B. Araullo, the country may be able to produce seven tonnes of corn this year as that production level was already reached in 2009.

Based on the survey of standing crops as well as the planting intentions of corn farmers for April to June, Araullo calculates that corn production for the first semester of the year will reach 3.3 million tonnes.

The projected corn output for January to June this year is 36.34 percent higher than the 2.41 MMT produced in the same period last year.

In January, corn farmers belonging to the Philippine Maize Federation (Philmaize) had said that output may reach 7.4 million tonnes on good weather and good prices.

According to Araullo, yellow corn is currently pegged at PHP13 (US$0.30) per kilogram.

Corn farmers are benefiting from the moderate La Niña episode which is bringing rains to farmlands in most major corn growing areas in the country.

In 2010, white and yellow corn production dropped by almost 10 percent to 6.37 million tonnes.

The decline was caused by the El Niño weather phenomenon in the first half of last year.

The dry spell caused farmers to delay their planting and consequently delayed the harvest of their corn crops.

Aside from the dry spell, the sector was also hit by typhoons which damaged PHP367.96 million (US$8.45 million) worth of corn grains.