PHILIPPINES (18 February)
With the harvesting of the main season completed, the 2002 paddy rice production in the Philippines is now expected to be at a record level of about 13.2 million tonnes, up by 1.1 percent from the previous year. Drier weather caused by El Niņo was seen as more conducive during ripening stage of the paddy crop. Consequently the rice imports for 2003 are set at some 17 percent lower (in the order of 1 million tonnes) than 2002 imports. For the first time, some of these imports (225 000 tonnes) will be allowed through the private sector, dismantling the monopoly of the National Food Authority to import rice since 1993.
Maize production in 2002 is estimated at 4.3 million tonnes, about 4.6 percent lower than the previous year output. The 2003 production, on the other hand, is expected to be around 5 million tonnes due to more plantings of maize, substituting rice, on account of El Niņo weather pattern and the use of genetically-modified and high-yielding maize seeds. According to the Government the imports of maize in 2003 are expected to be over 0.2 million tonnes as opposed to 0.4 million tonnes in 2002. The country does not produce wheat. In 2002 wheat imports were about 3.4 million tonnes.
The Food Insecurity and Vulnerability Information and Mapping Systems (FIVIMS) analysis in the country indicates that upward trend in the incidence of poverty started since the financial crisis of 1997 has continued in recent years.