Marcos eyes improved cropping schedule to protect local production from agri imports

by Jel Santos

President and Agriculture Secretary Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. on Tuesday, Feb. 28, said he wants a detailed cropping schedule to ensure that agricultural imports will not harm local production.

(MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO)

This came after he met with officials of the Department of Agriculture (DA) and other concerned agencies.

Marcos also requested that agriculture officials provide more information about the cyclical nature of crops in the Philippines in order to avoid importing products during harvest season.

When sourcing products from other countries, the government, according to the chief executive, must consider the sensitivities of local cropping, particularly their cyclical nature.

“Hindi tayo nag-i-import ng kahit anong produkto pagka maraming production para naman magamit natin lahat ng production na galing sa Pilipinas ( We do not import any product when there is a lot of products so that we can use all the production that comes from the Philippines),” said Marcos.

“Kung mag-i-import lang tayo, kung talagang may kulang and that’s what I mean about the cyclical nature of crops, that we have to be sensitive to that(If we only import, if something is really lacking and that’s what I mean about the cyclical nature of crops, that we have to be sensitive to that),” he continued.

Marcos said that, in response to climate change, Filipino farmers must change their planting schedule in some areas of the Philippines to take advantage of the moving rainy season, adding it may bring some benefits because farmers can have three croppings a year. 

The cyclical nature of agriculture already exists, the President said, adding, however, that with the advent of climate change, which complicates things, the sector should adjust accordingly.

Marcos said the agriculture’s cyclical nature already exists, and  that with the advent of climate change, which complicates matters, the sector should adjust accordingly.

Agriculture, forestry, and fisheries (AFF) performed modestly last year, at 0.5 percent, data showed.

The modest growth was attributed to positive Gross Value Added (GVA) growth of 2.3 percent in livestock and 6.7 percent in poultry, despite a -1.1 percent and -3.5 percent decline in the performance of the crops and fisheries subsectors, respectively.

The DA is aiming for an increase in the agriculture sector’s growth rate between 2023 and 2028 of 1.8 percent to 3.3 percent under the Philippine Development Plan of the Marcos administration.