Seniang caused P12M agriculture damage in region

CEBU, Philippines - Initial damage estimates to the agriculture sector in Central Visayas due to Typhoon Seniang has been pegged at more than P12 million.

The latest National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council report posted on its website showed that Seniang caused crop losses in Cebu and Bohol provinces worth P12.61 million.

It also indicated that the overall agriculture damage estimate for all affected regions in Visayas and Mindanao is at P574.8 million.

According to the report, P12.57 million were rice losses in Bohol while Cebu only suffered P39,120 in rice losses and P98,345 in corn losses.

The Department of Agriculture, on the other hand, said that of the total 33,575 hectares of rice lands in Bohol, which accounts for 90 percent of total rice production in the region, only 1,933.25 hectares were damaged by Seniang.

In an earlier interview, DA-7 Director Angel Enriquez said that aside from rice and corn, several high value crops in Cebu’s southern towns and in Bohol towns were damaged by heavy flooding and torrential rain the typhoon brought.

He earlier said that his office would release on Monday the total damage to agriculture in Central Visayas.

“We can’t finalize it (total cost) yet as the teams in Negros, Bohol and Cebu are still in the field now validating the reports,” he said, adding that he has not come across of damage reports from Negros Oriental.

He revealed that DA-7 has buffer stocks of seeds for rice and vegetables to be given to affected farmers as initial assistance.

Enriquez explained that the recent calamity would unlikely affect the region’s farm output in the early part of this year, as the harvest season starts in September yet. — (FREEMAN)