Karding agriculture damage hits P3.12 billion
HELPING FARMERS | This farmer in San Miguel, Bulacan, is among those needing government assistance as farming areas in Luzon try to recover from the devastation wrought by Super Typhoon Karding (Noru) early this week. (Photo by GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE / Philippine Daily Inquirer)
MANILA, Philippines — Super Typhoon Karding (international name: Noru) continues to wipe out hundreds of tons of agricultural produce even after exiting the country a week ago.
The Department of Agriculture (DA), in its latest advisory, said the typhoon’s damage to the essential agriculture sector as of Monday has surged further to P3.12 billion. The figure was substantially higher than the P141.38 million initially reported and P2.95 billion reported last Friday.
To date, Karding has taken its toll on the livelihood of some 108,594 farmers and fishers in the Cordillera, Ilocos, Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal and Quezon), Bicol and Western Visayas regions.
The DA pegged the volume of production loss at 158,117 metric tons covering 170,762 hectares of land.
“Affected commodities include rice, corn, cassava, abaca, high-value crops, livestock and poultry, and fisheries. Damage has also been incurred in agricultural infrastructures, machineries and equipment,” it added.
The rice sector alone sustained P2.05 billion in damage, with the affected area of 163,162 ha and the volume of production loss at 134,205 MT. It chalked up 65.78 percent of the total damage.
The volume, according to the DA, is equivalent to 0.66 percent of the 20.25 million MT total production target volume for rice this year while the volume for corn is tantamount to 0.05 percent of the annual total production target volume for corn at 5.11 million MT.P709-M assistance
High-value crops came in second with P831.29 million affecting assorted fruits and vegetables, legumes and spices. The production volume loss is estimated at 20,456 MT spanning 5,587 ha.
Other sectors are still reeling from the typhoon such as fisheries (P116.55 million), corn (P65.40 million), infrastructure (P26.30 million), livestock and poultry (P12.86 million), machines and equipment (P12.20 million), cassava (P1.47 million) and abaca (P118,350).The DA has earmarked more than P709 million worth of assistance and interventions for the affected farmers and fisherfolk.
The bulk of it represents P500 million in quick response fund which can be tapped to immediately repair damaged production facilities.
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