Philfida: Rains cut PHL abaca output in 2022
THE country's abaca production in 2022 declined by nearly 6 percent to 63,640.61 metric tons (MT) from the previous year's 67,488.11 MT due to the adverse impact of rains on farms, according to the Philippine Fiber Industry Development Authority (PhilFida).
PhilFida data showed that abaca output in 6 producing regions, including key producers such as Bicol and Davao, declined last year.
The Bicol region’s abaca output, the highest nationwide, contracted by 8.6 percent to 15,189.06 MT from 16,611.22 MT.
Meanwhile, abaca production in Davao region, the country’s second biggest producer of the natural fiber, fell by 10.3 percent to 13,108.47 MT from the previous year’s 14,618.29 MT.
Northern Mindanao’s abaca production contracted by 21.4 percent year-on-year to 6,482.5 MT while Eastern Visayas’ output contracted by 20 percent on an annual basis to 3,819.36 MT.
However, data from the attached agency of the Department of Agriculture showed that abaca production in six other regions nationwide grew, led by Caraga which registered a 15.9-percent increase in output.
Caraga’s abaca production last year reached 11,193.43 MT, 1,534.43 MT higher than the 9,659 MT recorded in 2021.
Abaca output in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao rose by 2 percent year-on-year to 3,638.82 MT while output in Western Visayas remained f lat at 3,785.49 MT, based on PhilFida data.
The agency attributed the contraction in abaca output to the typhoons that damaged farms nationwide last year and plant diseases.
PhilFida also said the harvesting methods adopted by abaca farmers have also led to the decline in abaca production.
The agency said the practice of bacbac or umbak harvesting as well as “pojada” are spreading plant diseases as farmers use contaminated knives for harvesting.
PhilFida had projected that the country’s total abaca output last year would return to the 70,000-MT level. The target for 2022 is 3.72 percent higher than the 67,488.11 MT recorded in 2021. (Related story: https://businessmirror.com.ph/2022/04/18/phl-abaca-output-down-by-13-in-jan-feb/)
The Philippines produces 85 percent of the world ’s abaca fiber supply, and 1.5 million Filipinos depend on it for their livelihood.