Corn farmers see production rebound for 2011

Corn farmers expect a production rebound to reach 7.4 million metric tons (MT) next year, from an estimated 6.8 million MT this year. "I am very positive that because of good weather conditions, good prices, as well as the expansion in areas planted to corn, production in 2011 would surpass the expected production for 2010," said Roger Navarro, Philippine Maize Federation president. The good price of yellow corn in the local market, now around P15 to P16 per kilogram, would push more farmers to go into corn planting, according to the federation. "Even the international price of corn is good. It is currently at a range of P14.60 to P15.60 per kilo," said Navarro. Farmers are gaining the upper hand with the La Niña weather phenomenon that brought rains to farmlands in most major corn growing areas in the country proving relatively moderate, Navarro said. Another factor was the "quick turn around" cropping, a system that allows corn farmers to plant their crop in ricefields immediately after palay has been harvested near Magat Dam in Region II. "There will be an additional 60,000 hectares planted to corn. Assuming that production would reach 5 metric tons per hectare, there could be an incremental output of 300,000 MT of corn for 2011," Navarro said. This year, however, the federation expects output to remain at 6.8 million MT as the corn sector had been devastated by a prolonged dry spell because of the El Niño weather phenomenon in the first semester. The dry spell delayed corn planting and interrupted the usual harvest cycle. Apart from the dry spell, corn fields were also hit by typhoons, notably “Juan" in October, which inflicted crop damage to the tune of P367.96 million. — VS, GMANews.TV