CROP DIVERSIFICATION IN THE PHILIPPINES (2024)

* Programme Director and Consultant, High ValueCommercial Crop Programme, Department of Horticulture, College of Agriculture,University of the Philippines, Los Baños, Laguna,Philippines.

The Philippine economy is largely dependent on agriculture. Ofthe approximately 73 million population in 1998, the agriculture sector employsmore than 11 million people and about 26 percent of these are women. There areabout 29 million people dependent on agriculture.

In 1998, the total area planted to crops was 11.6 millionhectares. Of these, 5.5 million hectares are devoted to rice and corn, 4.8million hectares for major crops and 1.3 million hectares for other crops. Majorcrop products exported include coconut, sugar, pineapple, banana, coffee andmango. On the other hand, rice and corn continue to be imported to meet thedemand of the growing population.

The Department of Agriculture (DA) is the government agencyresponsible for all agricultural activities in the country. The DA has a numberof staff bureaus and attached agencies that conduct activities on cropproduction, regulation and R&D. The attached agencies look at a specificcrop, e.g., the Philippine Rice Research Institute (Philrice) for rice, theSugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) for sugar cane, the Philippine CoconutAuthority (PCA) for coconut, the Fibre Development Authority (FIDA) for abacaand other fibre crops, the National Tobacco Administration (NTA) for tobacco,and the Cotton Development Authority (CODA) for cotton. On the other hand, thestaff bureaus like the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI), the Bureau ofPost-Harvest Research and Extension (BPRE), the Bureau of Soils and WaterManagement (BSWM), the Bureau of Agricultural and Fishery Product Standards(BAFPS), and the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics (BAS) have multi-cropresponsibilities.

A crop diversification scheme is largely dependent on climaticconditions. There are four climate types in the Philippines, namely, Type I withtwo pronounced seasons, dry from November to April and wet during the rest ofthe year; Type II with no dry season and with very pronounced maximum rainfallfrom November to January; Type III where seasons are not very pronounced andrelatively dry from November to January; and Type IV where rainfall is more orless evenly distributed throughout the year.

The DA has adopted crop diversification as a strategy topromote and hasten agricultural development. As such, this paper presents cropdiversification in two perspectives. One aspect is planting a cash crop afterthe main crop and the other is planting intercrops (permanent or cash crops)in-between the main crop, usually a permanent crop. This strategy helps attainthe goal of the Department in increasing productivity and farm incomenotwithstanding the benefit of environmental conservation.

The objectives of this paper are threefold, namely: a) toreview the existing crop diversification schemes in the country; b) to presentthe opportunities and constraints in the adoption of crop diversification; andc) to review government policies related to crop diversification.

2. CROP PRODUCTION AND ECONOMICS SCENARIO

2.1 Crop Production Area

In the 1991 Census of Agriculture and Fisheries, there were9.97 million hectares of agricultural land (BAS, 1997). Of these, 55.3 percentof the farmlands were used for growing temporary crops and 41.8 percent wereplanted to permanent crops. There were 4.61 million farms and the averagenational farm size was 2.16 hectares; 37 percent of the farms were less than ahectare in size.

The total area devoted to agriculture has been declining. Itcan be noted in Table 1 that in 1989, the area for agriculture was 13,147,100hectares; in 1998, this was reduced to 11,664,600 hectares, a decrease of 1.48million hectares. Cereal crops dominate the production area for the period underreview considering rice and corn to be the staple foods of the Filipinos. From1989 to 1993, more area was planted to corn than rice; however, from 1994 to1998, more area was used for rice production.

Coconut, banana, sugar cane, cassava, and pineapple areconsidered major crops in terms of area planted and export potential. Among thecommercial crops, it is interesting to note that there was a tremendous increasein area planted to mango, that is, from 56,400 hectares in 1989 to 93,900hectares in 1998. This can be attributed to the export potential of thisfruit.

2.2 Volume of Crop Production

Table 2 presents the annual production of both major and minorcrops in the Philippines. Lowest production for both rice and corn was observedin 1998 at 8,554.8 metric tonnes and 3,823.2 metric tonnes, respectively.However, in 1999 (report of the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics), riceproduction increased to 11,700 metric tonnes (27.4 percent increase) while cornproduction increased by 761.4 metric tonnes (16.6 percent increase).

There is a declining trend in coconut production. Lowestproduction was observed during the last two years. This has been attributed tofelling of trees for lumber production and the relatively old coconut trees. Onthe other hand, mango production increased due to the increase in area planted.Highest production was observed in 1997 (987.1 metric tonnes). In general, theproduction of major and other crops did not change dramatically during theperiod under review.

The low production of agricultural crops in 1998 was due tothe occurrence of typhoons “Loleng” and “Gading”.

2.3 Yield Per Hectare of Agricultural Crops

Table 3 shows the average yield per hectare of agriculturalcrops. The average yield per hectare of rice and corn is low at 2.6-2.9 metrictonnes per hectare and 1.2-1.6 metric tonnes per hectare, respectively. There isa continuous decline in the yield of sugar cane. From a high of 81.8 metrictonnes per hectare in 1989 this decreased to only 52.5 metric tonnes per hectarein 1998, a decrease of about 35 percent.

The average yield of mango and rubber is increasing. In mango,the average yield increased from a mere 5 metric tonnes per hectare in 1989-1992to 10 metric tonnes per hectare in 1997-1998. Rubber yield increased from a lowof 1.99 metric tonnes in 1989 to 2.44 metric tonnes in 1998.

2.4 Share of Crops in National Agricultural GDP andTrade

From 1992 to 1996, agriculture contributed 20.93-22.28 percentof the GDP. Latest statistics show that in 1994-1998 (BAS, 1999) the Philippineeconomy grew by an average of 4.55 percent in terms of GNP or 3.92 percent interms of GDP. The country's economic performance before 1998 had real growth inGDP from 4.39-5.85 percent. The regional currency crisis and adverse weatherconditions in 1997-1998 greatly affected the economy.

From Table 4, it is evident that the percent share ofa*griculture to GNP is decreasing both at current and constant prices. The GrossValue Added in agriculture has been increasing (Table 5). However, the cropssector posted negative growth in 1990 and 1998, that is, -0.78 and -12.86,respectively.

2.5 Trade of Crop Products

Table 6 presents the agricultural foreign trade statisticsfrom 1989 to 1998. The value of agricultural imports was lower than the value ofexports from 1989 to 1993. From 1994 to 1998, however, the reverse can benoted.

The volume of sugar exported is on the decline. This can beattributed to decreasing area devoted to sugar production, lower production perunit area and high production cost. Likewise, decreasing export volumes ofdesiccated coconut, coffee and copra are evident. However, increasing exportvolumes can be noted in coconut oil, copra oil and banana.

3. PATTERNS OF CROP DIVERSIFICATION

With growing population, urbanization and industrialization,the area devoted to crop production has been declining. As a result, newstrategies were formulated and crop diversification is one of these. As astrategy, crop diversification maximizes the use of land and optimizes farmproductivity and incomes.

There are several factors associated with cropdiversification. According to Gonzales (1989), the adoption of cropdiversification schemes is dictated by both physical and economic factors.Physical factors include land capability, rainfall patterns, water quality, cropsuitability and technology. Economic factors, on the other hand, include costs,prices, markets, and economic viability of alternative cropping schemes (Adrianoand Cabezon, 1989).

Farmers have shifted to rice-based farming systems due toconstraints like inadequate water, land suitability and climatic conditions(Obcemea et al., 1996). Furthermore, they attributed adoption of this scheme toincome stability, increasing demand for non-rice crops, and high profitabilityper unit area.

Francisco (1995) reported that three factors determine thefarmer's choice of rice cropping system. These are farmers' technical knowledgein growing the crop, adaptability of the crop to the local conditions, andamount of resources available to finance the production expenses. Aside fromthese are market forces that affect prices of both the output and inputs andlevel of government support extended to the cultivation of both major and othercrops.

3.1 Diversification in Rice Lands

Diversification in rice lands started in the 1970's whenresearchers began developing technologies and strategies for optimizing farmproductivity (Galvez, 1990). According to Adriano and Cabezon (1989),diversification of specific non-rice crops in irrigated lands began only duringthe mid-1980s. This government policy was adopted to raise farm incomes andintensify employment opportunities in the rural areas.

The International Rice Research Institute (based in thePhilippines) initiated rice-based cropping studies in the mid-1970's (Mirandaand Panabokke, 1989). This led to the introduction of crops other than riceduring the dry season following the wet season rice crop.

In the rainfed and upland areas of the Philippines, there are25 rice-based patterns with rice as the main crop followed by another crop(Adriano, 1989). According to the National Agricultural Research and ExtensionAgenda (BAR, 1989), cropping patterns differ by geographical location (Table7).

A wide range of crops can be grown after rice depending onrainfall and availability of water, elevation and land features of theenvironment. Corn, tobacco, garlic, and legumes are the major crops after ricein these four regions. In 1991-1995, rainfed lowland rice-based croppingsystems, namely, rice-corn, rice-garlic, rice-mungbean, rice-sweet pepper, andrice-tomato were evaluated in Ilocos Norte as part of the Rainfed Lowland RiceResearch Consortium implemented by Mariano Marcos State University, thePhilippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) and IRRI (Obcemea et al., 1996;Yokohama et al., 1998).

In a nationwide survey done by PhilRice in the last two years(unpublished), six major cropping patters, namely, rice-rice, rice-vegetables,rice-fish, rice-corn, rice-legumes, and others, were studied. The percentage ofeach cropping pattern was determined aside from information such as area devotedto rice farming, number of rice farmers, average landholding, tenurial status,seed production area, and local problems in rice production.

3.2 Diversification in Coconut Lands

In coconut, diversification means the simultaneous growing ofone or more crops in a coconut area. Cash crops or permanent crops can be growndepending on a number of factors. These are the environment (soil, topography,and climate), socio-economic (tenure and capital) and technical (availabletechnology and management requirements) factors that could either be within orbeyond the control of the farmers (PCARRD, 1993). Furthermore, eight importantconsiderations have been identified in intercropping coconut. Theseare: amenability of coconut farms to intercropping, available market,favourable climate, suitable soil conditions, favourable slope of the land,farmers' resources and attitudes, technical and working arrangements, andavailability of good planting materials.

A wide range of crops can be grown under coconut. Permanentcrops like coffee, cacao, abaca, lanzones and other fruit trees can beestablished. Cash crops, on the other hand, include corn, peanut, sweet potato,pineapple, banana, mungbean, arrowroot, ramie and vegetables, amongothers.

As stated earlier, one or more permanent and cash crops can begrown under coconut. When a combination of crops of varying heights, rootingsystem, and canopy patterns to maximize utilization of sunlight, soil nutrients,and moisture is grown, this is referred to as a multi-storey cropping pattern.This pattern consists of three levels, namely, coconut as the top floor,perennials as the mid-storey crops and low-growing annuals as the ground floorcrops. Aside from the multi-storey cropping system, Felizardo (1988) reportedthat livestock and poultry are grown under coconut in a number of provinces inthe country.

The suitability of the above-mentioned crops as intercrops hasbeen extensively studied. The climatic and soil requirements of most intercropshave been determined. There are a number of technoguides, brochures, manuals andpamphlets that detail crop varieties to be used, cultural management practicesand post-harvest and storage operations. In most cases, the profitability ofintercropping with coconut is included in these publications.

3.3 Successful Crop Diversification Patterns

Table 8 presents the documented successful cropdiversification practices in the Philippines. According to Adriano (1989),garlic production exceeded that of irrigated rice in the Ilocos region.Likewise, onion production was very profitable in the Central Luzon Region.Similar results were reported by Gonzales in 1989; in Ilocos and Central Luzonregions, the highest profit was obtained from onion, peanut andgarlic.

As intercrops of coconut, passion fruit, banana, pineapple,and cacao have been documented to give high net returns. Research using blackpepper + papaya/cacao + pineapple under 17-year old coconut conducted in DavaoResearch Centre produced a net profit of PHP 8,234 per hectare per cropping asagainst PHP 2,494 from coconut alone.

4. CHALLENGES, OPPORTUNITIES AND PROSPECTS OF CROPDIVERSIFICATION

Moya and Miranda (1989) discussed the technical, social andinstitutional issues in diversifying rice areas. Technical issues include theintricate and differential relationships among edaphic, climatic, hydrologic,biotic and agronomic properties of the flooded rice environment and drylandnon-rice production systems. Socio-economic issues are hinged on profitabilityof cultivating non-rice crops compared to rice, availability of markets andunstable prices of non-rice crops. On the other hand, institutional issuesinclude irrigation service fee payment, level of government support and farmerparticipation.

In the rice-onion cropping system, farmers encountered moreeconomic than technical problems. Production-related problems include lack ofcapital and high cost of inputs (Marzan, 1989).

In a preliminary study conducted by Cablayan and Valera(1989), four constraints to crop diversification were identified. These were dryseason rainfall, availability of irrigation water for rice, limited irrigationmanagement and inappropriate on-farm irrigation and drainage facilities.Furthermore, they noted that farmers in some areas were unfamiliar with growingnon-rice crops under irrigation. Unstable farm gate prices deter many farmersfrom practicing diversification.

Adriano and Cabezon (1989) discussed in detail the emergingeconomic issues and constraints to crop diversification. Vital economic issuesinclude matching supply and demand, reallocation of investments, andstrengthening of institutional linkages.

In a review on rainfed lowland rice-based cropping systemsdone by Obcemea et. al. (1996), a list of factors that influence farmers todiversify to non-rice crops was presented. These were income stability,increasing demand for vegetables and non-rice crops, and higher profitabilityper unit area. Market supply and demand, stability of prices, cost of inputs andquality of non-rice products were identified as economic factors affecting cropdiversification. Other equally important factors include availability ofirrigation water, land suitability, climatic conditions, availability ofmanagement technology, time constraints caused by the presence of the rice crop,farmers' preference, resource base, influence of neighbouring farmers orextension agents, and land tenure.

In a study involving 266 farmers cultivating tobacco, cotton,tomato, onion, mungbean, garlic, corn, and peanut, Gonzales-Intal and Valera(1989) identified conditions conducive to crop diversification. These were lowincome from other sources, profitability as seen from other farmers, sufficientrice supply for one's own consumption, availability of seeds, insufficient watersupply, experience, perception of high market prices for the crop, and presenceof technical and institutional support.

5. GOVERNMENT POLICIES AND STRATEGIES FOR CROPDIVERSIFICATION

In order to strengthen the agriculture sector, cropdiversification was identified as a strategy in the Medium-Term Philippinedevelopment Plan, 1987-1992. This strategy was pursued to support food security,greater employment opportunities, increased farm incomes, and reduced dependenceon traditional export commodities which are facing declining demand in the worldmarket (Adriano and Cabezon, 1989).

At the Department of Agriculture, a National Committee on CropDiversification (NCCD) was created in 1992. This committee is inter-agency innature and its main function was planning and implementation of a cropdiversification programme. Four commodity-based plans were prepared whichinclude rice, corn, coconut and sugar cane. These plans were used in thepreparation of the DA's Medium Term Development Plan in the early 1990's(Pecson, 1993).

A number of economic policies to promote crop diversificationwere formulated by the Philippine government (Adriano and Cabezon, 1989). Inpricing policy, the government reduced the price support for rice with the viewthat some farmers will shift to alternative cash crops. Likewise, the governmentwants to reduce its direct intervention function in the marketing of rice byrelying more on the private sector both to trade (domestic and international)and to hold stocks.

Tax and tariff policies were adopted to eliminate importquotas and minimize the number of permits required for importation and lower theaverage tariff level. Likewise, there was abolition of all export taxes. Gradualelimination of all subsidies is a national policy. In the agriculture sector,subsidies were gradually eliminated since pricing of inputs and outputs hasalready been deregulated.

Increased public expenditures on R&D and other ruralinfrastructure facilities are stipulated in the Agriculture and FisheriesModernization Act of 1997. From a low 0.2 percent of the GVA allocated forresearch, there has been a substantial increase in government allocation forR&D. By the year 2002, R&D investment will be 1 percent of the GVA. Anumber of development programmes include investment in rural roads, transportand communications. As a result of these, an efficient price system is createdwhich is a potent promotion for crop diversification.

Crop diversification in rice and corn areas will proceedfavourably due to the implementation of the Agrarian Reform Programme. This ison the premise that as leaseholders or owner-cultivators, these farmers candecide what is best for their lands.

Current and Future Government Programmes on CropDiversification

On agricultural R&D, crop diversification is a componentof the Philippine National Agenda for Research and Development. In cropsassociated with cropping systems, the following are the concerns:

Coconut

· Pilotingof Coconut-based Farming Systems and Technology.

Cacao and Coffee

·Assessment of existing crop mix patterns adopted by cacao and coffeefarmers.

· Cacao-based and coffee-basedvegetables and legumes intercropping system in flat and hilly lands.

· Occurrence and severity ofinsect pests and diseases as affected by different cropping patterns.

· Nutritional requirements ofcacao and coffee as influenced by different cropping systems.

· Economics of intercroppingcacao and coffee with other crops in flat and hilly lands.

Rubber

·Alternative legume covers in rubber farms.
· Economics of cover cropping insmallholder rubber farms.
· Rubber cropping system modeldemonstration farms.

- Model Coconut Farms - the major objective is toimprove farm productivity and quality of life of coconut farmers by increasingtheir incomes. This programme has a crop diversification component.

- Replanting and Fertilization Programme - involves plantingand replanting efforts with balanced fertilization, cover crops andintercrops

- General Farm Assistance/Extension Services - concerned withthe strengthening of linkages among coconut farmers, R&D andextension.

The Department of Agriculture is currently negotiating forWorld Bank Assistance on the project entitled “Smallholder Tree CropsDevelopment and Diversification Project”. The project aims to alleviatepoverty, accelerate private investment in agro-industries, conserve andrehabilitate the environment, and contribute towards agricultural and overalleconomic growth by increasing long-term output, value added and exports forwhich the Philippines has a comparative advantage.

In order to enhance production and productivity the governmentcontinuously provides irrigation services to the farms. In 1997, about 1.34 Mhectares were covered by irrigation and drainage facilities. This wasapproximately 43 percent of the total potential irrigated areas.

6. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

The agriculture sector has been a major player in thePhilippine economy. With changing national and global trends, the sector hasidentified a number of strategies to be competitive. A strategy that has helpedalleviate poverty and increase productivity is crop diversification. The passageby the Philippine Congress of the Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act in1997 is a giant leap towards reaping the previous efforts of both government andprivate sectors on crop diversification.

Two perspectives on diversification are presented herein. Oneis planting alternate crops after the main crop and the other is planting one ormore crops in-between a perennial crop. The emphasis of the former is on ricewhile that of the latter is coconut. This is so because crop production areas inthe country are mainly devoted to these two important crops. Furthermore,government resources, over the years, have been largely allocated to thesecrops, and such cropping strategies have been documented. There are othercropping patterns practiced in some areas, e.g., corn-legume and corn-rootcrops. However, these are not fully documented; hence, these are not discussedin this paper.

There are a variety of factors that affect the adoption ofcrop diversification. These are the biotic (soil and kind of crop),environmental (climate), socio-economic and institutional factors. For emphasis,the socio-economic and institutional factors were discussed more than the othertwo.

Four important government policies that directly or indirectlyaffect crop diversification were presented. These are, pricing policy, tax andtariff policies, policy on public expenditure, and agrarian reform.

Past, present and future programmes and projects on cropdiversification are, likewise, presented. Present and future programmes largelydepend on the active participation of the private sector with the governmentproviding technical and infrastructure support.

REFERENCES

Adriano, M.S. 1989. Implications for policy of the studies onprofitability of irrigated non-rice crop production: A synthesis. Proc. Nationalworkshop on Crop Diversification in Irrigated Agriculture in the Philippines.IIMI, Sri Lanka, 134-142.

Adriano, M.S. and V.E. Cabezon. 1993. Economic policiesaffecting crop diversification in the Philippines. Proc. National Workshop onCrop Diversification in the Philippines, IIMI, Sri Lanka, 134-142.

Agulto, I. C. 1993. On-farm water management practices forupland crops. Proc. National Workshop on Crop Diversification in thePhilippines, IIMI, Sri Lanka, 56-64.

Bureau of Agricultural Research. 1999. The Philippine NationalAgenda for Research and Development. BAR, Quezon City, Phil.

Bureau of Agricultural Statistics. 1994, 1997, 1998 and 1999.Selected statistics on agriculture. DA-BAS, Quezon City, Phil.

Bureau of Agricultural Statistics. 2000. Report on theperformance of agriculture, January-December 1999.

Cablayan, D. and A. Valera. 1993. Irrigated diversifiedcropping constraints in the Philippines: A preliminary study. IIMI AnnualReport, 197-231.

Felizardo, B. C. 1988. Status and prospects of coconut-basedfarming systems in the Philippines. Coconut R&D Book Series no 59/88,PCARRD, Los Baños, Phil. 170-177.

Gonzales, L.A. 1989. The economics of diversifying intoirrigated non-rice crops in the Philippines. Proc. National workshop on CropDiversification in the Philippines, IIMI, Sri Lanka, 203-208.

Gonzales-Intal, M.A. and J. B. Valera. 1989. Successful cropdiversification in irrigated rice farms: Development of a cognitive decisionmaking model. Proc. National workshop on Crop diversification in thePhilippines, IIMI, Sri Lanka, 194-202.

Marzan, E. G. 1989. Profitability analysis of rice and onionsplanted during the dry season under irrigated conditions. Proc. NationalWorkshop on Crop Diversification in the Philippines, IIMI, Sri Lanka,71-74.

Moya, T. B. and S. M. Miranda. 1989. Socio-technical issues indiversifying rice-based irrigation systems. Proc. National Workshop on CropDiversification in the Philippines, IIMI, Sri Lanka, 4-19.

Obcemea, W. N. et. al. 1996. Rainfed lowland rice-basedcropping systems in the Philippines: A review. ACIAR Proc. No. 70,197-231.

PCARRD. 1993. The Philippines recommends for coconut. SeriesNo. 2-B, PCARRD, Los Baños, Phil., 234.

Pecson, A. N. 1993. The National Committee on CropDiversification. Technotrends, 7:1, BAR, Quezon City, Phil. 7-9.

Table 1. Production Area of Commercial Crops in thePhilippines, 1989-1998 (BAS)

*in Philippine Peso