Pineapple was the most lucrative agricultural commodity last year as it recorded a 526-percent return on investment (ROI), the highest among the 27 local farm and fish products, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
In its annual report, the PSA said pineapple production in 2020 had a 526.98-percent ROI, with farmers earning a gross revenue of P782,978 from their investment of P124,881 per hectare.
The PSA report showed that the net income for every hectare of pineapple production was at P658,097, translating to a net profit-cost-ratio of P5.27, which refers to the amount of net income per every peso investment.
“Per kilogram, cost of production of pineapple was estimated at P3.09. Farm-gate prices averaged P19.37 per kilogram,” the PSA said in the report published recently. The PSA data showed that the average pineapple yield per hectare last year was at 40,422 kg.
PSA data indicated that the average farm-gate price of pineapple per kilogram was at a 3-year high in 2020. Production cost was also at a 3-year high due to more expensive planting materials and labor.
Figures from the agency also showed that the average pineapple yield per hectare last year dropped to a three-year low.
The second most profitable crop was watermelon which recorded an ROI of 462.48 percent, according to the PSA report.
The total cost of growing watermelon in one hectare of land reached P79,912. Gross revenue amounted to P256,262 based on an average yield of 17,141 kg per hectare and average farm-gate price of P14.95 per kg.
“After subtracting cash costs, returns settled at P206,654 per hectare. Returns amounted to P205,961 per hectare after deducting cash and non-cash costs,” the PSA said. “Net returns per hectare averaged P176,350.”
The PSA said farmers earned P2.21 for every peso invested in watermelon production.
Out of the 27 agricultural commodities included in the report, only coffee production posted a negative ROI last year, according to the PSA. It recorded an ROI of -6.623 percent last year with total gross returns at P43,388 per hectare, P3,077 lower than the production cost of P46,465.
For every peso invested in coffee production, farmers lost P0.07, according to PSA. In 2019, every peso invested in coffee production yielded P0.07.
PSA data showed that coffee farmers last year had to deal with more expensive inputs such as fertilizer, labor, and interests on crop loan, which caused average production cost to hit a 3-year high.
Coffee yield per hectare fell to a two-year low of 535 kg while the average farm-gate price declined to a three-year low of P81.04 per kg.