May 8, 2007

Philippine corn output up 11.4 percent in Q1 2007

Philippine corn output in the first three months of the year reached 1.70 million tonnes, up 11.4 percent despite adverse weather conditions in some corn producing areas in the country, the agriculture department said Monday (May 7).

The increase in output could have been higher if continuous rains and cold weather conditions in major corn producing areas in the country had not affected the crop, the department's Bureau of Agriculture Statistics said.

Despite unfavourable conditions in some areas, planting areas rose by 10 percent to 643,000 hectares as high prices of the grain in both the local and foreign markets encouraged farmers to plant more, the bureau said.

Corn output in the April-to-June period, however, is expected to drop 4.2 percent to 1.03 million tonnes following a probable decline in planting area due to lower rains in February and March in the Mindanao region, a major producer of the yellow grain.

Production in the July-to-September period is likely to recover by 4.1 percent to reach 2.3 million tonnes on expectations of early rainfall, the bureau said.

The department has set a production target of 6.9 million tonnes, up 13 percent from last year's output. Corn is a major component in animal feeds.