THE country’s palay (unmilled) output for the second quarter is projected to have declined by 8.6 percent compared to the same period last year, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said.
Latest data from the government estimated that palay production during the April-June period could have hit 3.88 million metric tons (MT), down from the 4.25 million MT harvested in the same period in 2023.
As of June 1, 2024, the revised estimate for palay production during the quarter indicated a 0.6-percent decrease from the initial estimate of 3.9 million MT on April 1, 2024.
The palay harvest area, meanwhile, was estimated to have gone down by 7.2 percent to 891,770 hectares (ha) in the second quarter from 960,870 ha of actual harvested area last year. There was also a decrease in yield per ha.
“Based on standing crop for the period April to June 2024, the yield per hectare of palay may decrease to 4.36 metric tons (MT) or by 1.4 percent from the previous year’s same period yield per hectare of 4.42 MT,” the PSA said.
As of the beginning of June, about 771,900 ha of rice land have been harvested that is equivalent to 86.6 percent of the total harvested area, translating to a palay output of 3.16 million MT.
Of the remaining 119,870 ha to be harvested, the statistics agency said that 98.6 percent were at the maturing stage and 1.4 percent at the reproductive stage.
The country’s rice stocks, meanwhile, increased annually by 19.0 percent as of the beginning of June.
PSA data showed that local rice inventory during the month was estimated at 2.16 million MT, up from 1.82 million MT logged in the same period of 2023.
On a monthly basis, rice stocks also went up by 4.2 percent compared to the previous month’s inventory of 2.08 million MT.
Rice stocks held by the National Food Authority (NFA) and the commercial sector both registered annual growths of 62.5 percent and 56.7 percent, respectively.
The inventory held by the NFA was higher at 138,270 MT compared to the 85,100 MT recorded in 2023. Stocks in the commercial sector also increased to 1.38 million MT, up from last year’s 848,110 MT.
Household stocks registered an annual decrease of 21.3 percent compared to the volume logged in the same month last year. The sector recorded 696,550 MT of rice stocks during the period, a decrease from June 2023’s 884,990 MT.
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