Ex-DA chief: El Niño damage to agriculture underreported

MANILA, Philippines — The damage caused by the El Niño phenomenon to the agriculture sector is underreported, according to former Department of Agriculture secretary Leonardo Montemayor, as he noted that the DA has reported total farm losses of only P5.9 billion.

In a message to The STAR yesterday, Montemayor said that former Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) chief Rafael Coscolluela had warned that sugar production in Negros is expected to drop by 30 percent amid the impact of El Niño on sugarcane plantations.

“In the case of sugar,  former governor and SRA administrator Lito Coscolluela told me during my recent visit in Negros Occidental that sugarcane planters are expecting a 30-percent drop in the standing crop output,” Montemayor said.

He noted that Negros Occidental supplies 60 to 65 percent of the country’s local sugar consumption.

“I believe that there is underreporting in the damage of almost P6 billion. For sugar alone, we know that Negros is a sugar-producing province. We have yet to receive report from the DA on the damage of El Niño to our sugarcane plantations,” Montemayor said.

For his part, Coscolluela said that late-milled sugar fields have not been replanted because of dry conditions.

“If ratooned, they do not grow well. Standing cane has not been fertilized and with limited irrigation, is mostly stunted. Some planters want to mill early-milled cane now instead of waiting for next milling season in September to October even if still immature and with low tonnage and then ratoon these fields rather than replant,” he added.

A lot of cutting back of fields will be done when the rains fall in order to have planting materials for dried up, abandoned fields, causing further loss of millable tonnage, according to Coscolluela.

“The tonnage already lost on standing cane due to dry conditions cannot be recovered, however much you fertilize the stunted cane. All told, I see a 30-percent loss in tonnage in Negros. In other provinces, I don’t know. I have to check on area and tonnage when I open my data files later,” he said.

He added that the SRA has yet to issue a report on El Niño damage to sugar production.

Montemayor said that aside from sugarcane plantations, coconut farmers also reported that they were affected by El Niño.

“In some areas, coconut trees produce fewer or smaller nuts. Reports of proliferation of coconut scale insects (cocolisap) due to hot temperature in the Zamboanga Peninsula,” he added.

While he cannot give a particular figure on the extent of damage of El Niño, Montemayor maintained that the DA’s report was smaller compared to the actual losses in the agriculture sector.

“It is not only in the sugarcane, including fish, fishponds. We did not hear damage from the El Niño, the figures on affected animals  were also underreported as when there is too much heat, the animals suffer stress. For chicken layers, it affects the eggs, so the production of eggs will be affected,” he said.

The former agriculture chief stressed that a lot more should be done by the DA in getting the whole picture with respect to the impact of El Niño.

“The problem (brought by the impact of the El Niño) will still worsen until at least the end of May,” he said.

He added that no less than the Philippine Statistics Authority reported that palay production went down in the first three months of 2014.

“There will also be a delay in the planting (of palay) and therefore the harvest, which normally starts in October up to November could reach December. The months of April, May and June are very critical with respect to the crop production, especially for palay,” Montemayor said.

He warned that the country could experience tight rice supply especially during the lean months of July, August and September.