Christy Balita
Research expert covering the Philippines
Agriculture in the Philippines - statistics & facts
The Philippines is primarily an agricultural country with a large portion of Filipinos living in rural areas and supporting themselves through agricultural activities. Preliminary figures for 2022 reported about a quarter of employed Filipinos work in the agricultural sector which is made up of four sub-sectors: farming, fisheries, livestock, and forestry. In the same year, the sector generated a gross value added (GVA) of about 1.78 trillion Philippine pesos, equivalent to about 8.9 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). After two years of contraction due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the agriculture industry in the Philippines finally showed signs of recovery in 2022, although it remains to reflect a slower growth in comparison to the pre-pandemic periods.
On the other hand, the fisheries sector, which is composed of three subsectors: commercial, municipal, and aquaculture, reflected slow growth in recent years. The export value of principal fishery products from the country had also been declining since 2019 as the volume of production fluctuated. Among the main contributing factors were climate change and the practice of uncontrolled and unsustainable overfishing.
Status of agriculture in the Philippines
Due to its terrain and tropical climate condition, farming and fisheries have been the largest agricultural sub-sectors in the Philippines. Crop production, particularly of sugarcane, palay or rice, coconut, and bananas were among the highest nationwide and were also among the top export products. In recent years, oils, fruits and nuts, along with animal or vegetable fats contributed the largest share of the total agricultural exports in the Philippines. Meanwhile, for the livestock and poultry sectors, hog, cattle, and chicken were the leading products.On the other hand, the fisheries sector, which is composed of three subsectors: commercial, municipal, and aquaculture, reflected slow growth in recent years. The export value of principal fishery products from the country had also been declining since 2019 as the volume of production fluctuated. Among the main contributing factors were climate change and the practice of uncontrolled and unsustainable overfishing.
Challenges in the agriculture sector
The slow growth of the agricultural sector in the Philippines had been attributed to the rampant conversion of arable lands to residential subdivisions, industrial parks, and resorts. Of the 30 million hectares of land area, only one-third is used for agricultural activities. On top of that, the country’s geographical location makes it vulnerable to natural disasters such as flooding and drought, further contributing to the decrease in production. Investments in technology and innovation are necessary steps to diversify and transform the country’s agricultural output, along with increased production support and improved policies that prioritize the needs of farmers.
