Officials of top-performing agriculture regional offices show their certificates of recognition awarded by the Department of Agriculture on May 3. (Photo courtesy of DA-3)
MABALACAT CITY, Pampanga––Farmlands in Central Luzon have produced 18 to 20 percent of the country’s total rice output last year, the Department of Agriculture-Region 3 (DA-3) said on Wednesday, May 4.
Known as the rice granary of the Philippines, the region produced 3,741,210 metric tons (MT) of rice in 2021, which is 106,065 MT higher than the 3,365,148 MT yield in 2020, the DA-3 said in a statement.
It said 16,854 hectares of farmland in the region produced rice last year.
DA-3 was named the overall winner in the national agency’s awarding of well-performing regions on May 3 in Davao City.
Central Luzon got an overall performance rating of 91.18 percent, followed by Calabarzon with 89.66 percent, and Soccskcargen with 86.50 percent.
DA-3 said its first-quarter performance this year had improved by 43.9 percent compared to the same period last year.