September 4, 2009
Philippine 2009 farm output growth target still at 3 percent
The Philippine Department of Agriculture is maintaining a full-year 3 percent growth target for the farm sector, Secretary Arthur Yap said Thursday (September 3).
"I have no information yet to change that 3 percent (target). We are still holding on to it," Yap told reporters.
The farm sector grew 1.53 percent in the first six months of the year, after a fall in corn output tempered gains in rice, fisheries and poultry.
According to Yap, the department is still trying to ascertain how corn production will fare for the full year before making any adjustment in the growth target.
The production of corn, which accounts for about 6 percent of the agriculture sector, slid 2.59 percent in the January-June period. Some other crops, including sugar cane and coffee, also posted output declines.
Agriculture accounts for a fifth of the country's gross domestic product.
