GOOD HARVEST. Workers display red onions at the Divisoria Market in Manila on Nov. 3, 2023. The Department of Agriculture said Wednesday (May 8, 2024) that the suspension on onion importation may be extended until July this year following a bountiful harvest from March to April. (PNA photo by Yancy Lim)
MANILA – The Department of Agriculture (DA) said Wednesday it is looking at either extending the imports ban on onion or lowering import volume following a bountiful harvest season from March to April.
For the first quarter of 2024, the onion industry recorded a 28.58 percent production increase equivalent to PHP8.098 billion, higher than the PHP6.298 billion output for the same period last year, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
In an interview, Agriculture Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa said they will consult the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) to account for the actual supply in May.
“Matandaan natin, sinabi ni Secretary (Francisco) Tiu Laurel na walang importation hanggang May, at pwedeng i-extend hanggang July, depende sa magiging performance (We can recall that Secretary Tiu Laurel said there would be no importation until May, and this may be even extended until July, depending on the performance). So this could be one way of saying that we have enough supply,” de Mesa said in an interview.
He said the increase in production can also be attributed to the 40 percent increase in the land area planted to onions from 2023.
In Central Luzon alone, the onion production area is around 10,388 hectares this year.
“So, expected natin na tataas, plus of course, wala tayong bagyo na na-experience. Wala masyadong pinsala, except for ‘harabas’ (we expected it to increase, plus of course, we didn’t experience typhoons. The damage is not that much, except for the harabas) or armyworm,” de Mesa said.
The Philippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food Inc. (PCAFI) earlier requested to import onions by May as the El Niño phenomenon worsened the effects of armyworm infestation.
As of March, the armyworm infestation has affected 18 hectares of onion plantation. (PNA)
