Agriculture lone sector to post positive growth during pandemic

BOUNTUL HARVEST Rice fields across the country, like this one in Maguindanao province, continue to experience high yield amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to Agriculture Secretary William Dar. —ERWIN MASCARIÑAS

SAN FERNANDO CITY—Despite the successive typhoons this month, the agriculture sector has posted positive growth with palay (unhusked rice) breaking its highest harvest, Agriculture Secretary William Dar said here on Saturday.

“This year, rice harvest was 19.44 million metric tons, up by 44 MT over the highest record of 19 million MT. This is despite the ‘Santracruzan’ of typhoons,” said Dar during the launching here of the cash and food subsidy program for farmers and fishermen.

Dar also said the upbeat performance proved that the agriculture sector “was not affected by the coronavirus pandemic.”

According to him, agriculture was the only sector to show positive growth during the quarantine that shuttered most businesses.

From April to June at the height of the Luzon lockdown and strict quarantine, agriculture grew by 1.6 percent, followed by a rise of 1.2 percent from July to September.

P32-billion savings

Many of this year’s strongest typhoons occurred in the third quarter, leaving P16.2 billion in damage. But farmers were able to prepare because of advance storm warnings, enabling the sector to save P32 billion, Dar said.

If the losses were converted today, the country would have lost eight days’ worth of rice, he said.

The Department of Agriculture’s (DA) subsidy program had benefited 1,238 farmers and fishermen, each of whom received P3,000 as well as rice, chicken and eggs worth P2,000.

The subsidy is part of the DA’s P6.5-billion stimulus package for agriculture.

For 2021, Dar announced another round of subsidies for 1.4 million marginal farmers who till less than a hectare of rice land.

—Yolanda Sotelo