The country’s cassava output this year may fall by 5.01 percent to a four-year low of 2.652 million metric tons (MMT), from 2.792 MMT in 2017, due to low prices and erratic weather conditions, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations.
“In the Philippines, based on the pace of the harvest for the first six months of the year, cassava output is expected to reach 2.7 million tons in 2018, some 5-percent down from the level of 2017, due to unattractive root prices and disruptive weather,” the FAO said in the November iteration of its biannual food outlook report.
The FAO report noted that cassava is “more important for food security than industry” use in both Indonesia and the Philippines. Cassava, the FAO noted, is being promoted in the two countries as an alternative to rice to achieve food security and lessen dependency over imports.
“Dietary diversification programs in the two countries have targeted cassava as a substitute for rice, which both countries import heavily,” it added.
The country’s cassava output in the January-to-September period declined by nearly 3.6 percent to 1.954 MMT, from last year’s 2.027 MMT, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
The PSA attributed the decrease to lower demand and buying price for cassava, as well as problematic soil conditions.
“In Cagayan Valley, there were decreases in area planted due to shifting from cassava for industrial use to yellow corn production because of the strict implementation of buying quality chips by feed manufacturers. Also, other areas were left in fallow to regain soil fertility,” the PSA said.
“In addition, lesser and smaller tubers were harvested in the region due to insufficient soil moisture during tuber formation. Reduction in area planted in Northern Mindanao as a result of reduced demand from feed manufacturers and lower buying price in Central Visayas were also cited,” it added.
The FAO report noted that Asian cassava output would fall by at least 2.88 percent due to low prices, amid a slightly expected increase in global output of the rootcrop.
Cassava production in Asia this year could reach 85.511 MMT lower than the estimated volume of 88.051 MMT in 2017.
“However, in 2017 cassava production fell throughout the continent, and is forecast to contract further in 2018 by a similar margin of around 3 percent,” the FAO said.
“Much of the contraction is due to a reduction in plantings of 10 percent from the previous year in Thailand, Asia’s largest producer, following very low root prices at the beginning of the season and a lack of foreseen demand in China,” it added.
In contrast, world cassava production would slightly increase to 277.070 MMT, from 275.655 MMT estimated output in 2017, according to the FAO.