THE national rice inventory was estimated at 2.962 million metric tons (MT) as of Nov. 1, down 1.3% from a year earlier, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) said.
The estimate was contained in the PSA’s Rice and Corn Stocks Inventory report, which also noted that current inventory was up 30% month-on-month. The rice inventory is sufficient for about 92 days’ consumption based on the average daily total of 32,000 MT.
Some 51.5% of the rice stock was held by households, 33.1% by commercial warehouses, and 15.3% by the National Food Authority (NFA). The PSA gave no breakdown of domestically grown against imported rice.
Household inventory fell 2% year-on-year, while holdings of commercial warehouses fell 26.7%. NFA stocks rose 334.8% from a year earlier.
On a month-on-month basis, all categories reported higher stocks. Those in households increased 45.1%, with commercial warehouses 17.9%, and the NFA 15%.
The Department of Agriculture (DA) said palay production for 2019 is projected to hit 18.49 million MT, which is 15% short of the country’s annual requirement. The gap will be filled by imports, which are projected at 3.72 million MT by year’s end, equivalent to 26% of the country’s annual requirement.
The harvest season ran from September to October, followed by planting for dry season 2020 harvest. To increase productivity of rice farmers, the Department of Agriculture (DA) through the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) started the distribution of inbred seed supported by the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF). Average yields are expected to increase to six MT per hectare from four MT.
The corn inventory was reported at 1.198 million MT, up 87.4% year-on-year and up 9.4% from a month earlier.
Corn held in commercial warehouses accounted for 81.4% of the total, while households held 18.6%. The NFA did not have any corn stocks.
From a year earlier, households raised their holdings 44.3%, while commercial warehouse inventory surged 101.1%.
Month-on-month, household inventory fell 27.1%, while holdings of commercial warehouses increased 23.4%. — Vincent Mariel P. Galang
