The Department of Agriculture (DA) expects palay production this year to further increase to as much as 20.3 million metric tons (MT) from last year’s record production of 19.96 million MT.

In an online briefing yesterday, Dionisio Alvindia, director of the DA’s Philippine integrated rice program, said the figures are conservative and take into account crop damage from typhoons.

Alvindia said growth will be driven by farmers’ continued use of better seeds and more effective farming practices as well as government interventions.

Citing planting data from local government units (LGUs) for the dry cropping season, the DA said as of January 15, around 1.5 million hectares of land were planted with rice, mostly with certified and hybrid seeds which are known to produce higher yield.

Alvindia said the Philippines currently has a rice sufficiency level of 92 percent with the remaining 8 percent being supplied by imports. – Jed Macapagal

SOURCE: https://malayaph.com