Adverse weather and the lingering effects of African Swine Fever on hog production hurt agricultural output in the third quarter of 2024, with production value declining by 3.7 percent year-on-year to P397.43 billion, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
The fisheries subsector also felt the effects of adverse weather, with its production value dropping 5.5 percent year-on-year to P55.48 billion in the third quarter.
“Undeniably, the combined impacts of El Niño and La Niña weighed down palay production, a major component of the crop sector, which makes up over half of the value of agricultural and fisheries output,” said Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel Jr.
Tiu Laurel said to mitigate climate-related challenges, the Department of Agriculture (DA) is implementing changes to the rice cropping calendar and constructing infrastructure like water impounding dams to support the farming sector.
Despite the overall decline, there were bright spots in the data. Corn production value rose 1.3 percent, while poultry output increased 5.8 percent, reaching P68.66 billion in the quarter.
The DA chief also highlighted ongoing efforts by the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI), in collaboration with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), to develop an effective vaccine for African Swine Fever (ASF)—a disease that has severely impacted the hog industry since the initial outbreak in 2019.
PSA data showed that palay production value fell 12.3 percent year-on-year in the third quarter, contributing to a 5.1 percent decline in total crop output, which totaled P211.62 billion. Hog production, a significant component of the livestock subsector, dropped 8 percent.
Crops accounted for 53 percent of total agricultural production value, while livestock contributed around 16 percent.
Livestock output value decreased by 6.7 percent, amounting to P61.67 billion, according to the PSA.
