Agriculture
From The Report: The Philippines 2015
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Directly employing more than one-quarter of all workers in non-service industries, agriculture provided a livelihood for more than 11m Filipinos in 2013. The sector continues to play a pivotal role in the economy, even as the government looks to develop other industries to lead the way in the future. Recent public and private efforts to boost output and efficiency have led to promising improvements across several segments, including a drive for self-sufficiency in the staple crops of rice and corn and expansion of the sugar industry, while continued investment has produced growth in export-oriented cash crops. Determining the most effective means of countering the effects of inclement and often devastating weather will be a key concern going forward.

This chapter contains interviews with Francis N Pangilinan, Secretary, Office of the Presidential Assistant for Food Security and Agricultural Modernisation; and John P Perrine, Chairman, Unifrutti Group Philippines.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Several agricultural segments in the Philippines show production increases
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Still the country’s largest single employer, the Philippines’ agriculture sector continues to play a pivotal role in the economy, even as the government looks to develop other modern industries to lead the way in the future. Directly employing more than one-quarter of all workers in non-services industries, more than 11m Filipinos relied on agriculture for their livelihood in 2013, according to the Philippines Statistics Authority (PSA). Whatever the sector’s importance to the population at large, the efficiency of production in the Philippines still lags that of many regional competitors due to the diffuse nature of its archipelagic…

Interview

Francis N Pangilinan, Secretary, Office of the Presidential Assistant for Food Security and Agricultural Modernisation: Interview
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Interview:Francis N Pangilinan To what extent can agricultural development reverse rural unemployment and reorient focus toward farmer-centred development? FRANCIS N PANGILINAN: As the Philippines is a largely agricultural economy, agricultural development plays a significant role in curbing rural unemployment. One-third of the Philippine population is directly employed by the agricultural sector; however, if one counts allied services, such as milling, post-harvest or transport, nearly half…

Interview

John P Perrine, Chairman, Unifrutti Group Philippines: Interview
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Interview: John P Perrine How will the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) help unlock Mindanao’s agribusiness potential? JOHN P PERRINE: Political unrest in Mindanao has had a huge impact on the nation’s perspective of the BBL, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) and the country’s Muslim minority. Whereas Manila has experienced continuous economic growth, this has not been felt in rural areas, particularly the Bangsamoro region. Luzon has many regions,…

Analysis

Seafood scene: Exports of fish products are expanding as aquaculture increases output
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One of the greatest benefits derived from the Philippines’ widely dispersed archipelagic landmass of more than 7000 islands spread across 2.2m sq km of the Pacific Ocean is the abundance of sea life teeming beneath the surface of territorial waters. Given the seafaring nature, heavy reliance on seafood as a local dietary staple and maritime tradition of many Filipino people, the commercialisation of the fisheries present off the Philippines’ 36,289 km of coastline seems all but preordained. In all, the fisheries sector produced P244.55bn ($5.5bn) worth of seafood in 2013, up from P232.61bn ($5.2bn) the previous year and roughly double…

Analysis

Fruitful business: Production volumes and exports of fruit and vegetables continue to rise
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Easily the most profitable segment of the Philippines’ agriculture industry, fruit and vegetable farms continue to drive agricultural exports as well as supply produce for the domestic market. In 2013 the segment led all agricultural export commodities with 4.42bn kg of fruit and vegetables shipped worth a combined total of $1.97bn, according to Philippine Statistics Agency (PSA) data. This is the continuation of a longer-term trend that has seen fruit and vegetable exports expand from $571.74m in 1994 and $783.42m in 2004. The majority of these shipments are destined for the growing regional markets of China, the Middle East and, to a lesser…