By: Reigh John Bench Almendras
Photo Courtesy: Inquirer
Department of Agriculture (DA) Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa said in an interview with media outlets on Monday, Nov. 18, that the agricultural sector has suffered more than P10 billion in losses due to recent typhoons that battered the country.
Based on the data of the DA, Severe Tropical Storm Kristine, and Super Typhoon Leon account for P9.81 billion in damages with P5.89 billion in rice crops and P1.75 billion in irrigation systems.
Typhoons Nika and Ofel added P247.47 million in losses with P97.72 million in high-value crops and P49.08 million in rice.
DA sees importation as a potential solution to address the losses in the rice sector. De Mesa, who also serves as the DA Spokesperson, shared that the substantial losses “can be easily compensated by our importation.”
As for vegetables, prices are expected to remain high for some time as the sector recovers from the damages.
Agricultural and Agri-fisheries groups react
Farmers and fisher groups criticized the reliance on imports, arguing that the importation will not result in lower prices. They reiterated that enhanced support forto the affected sectors is crucial for recovering production and stabilizing prices.
“The price of imported rice has not decreased and the production cost for local rice remains high due to the government’s lack of support,” said Danilo Ramos, chairman of the farmers’ group Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) on Monday.
KMP is against the further importation of rice to compensate for the losses caused by the typhoon. For them, it ”undermines local production and jeopardizes farmers’ livelihoods.”
In another statement, KMP also called for alternative solutions to the supply of “galunggong” (round scad) other than importation as it also failed in lowering the price of the fish in the local markets.
“The retail price of galunggong remains to be P250 to P300 per kilogram amid the importation of around 35,000 MT of the same fish species,” KMP’s statement indicated.
Aside from their sources of livelihood, both the agricultural and agri-fishery sectors are also to recover from their property losses, as recent typhoons displaced approximately 685,071 individuals across the country.