As the damage to agriculture of typhoon Fabian and non-stop monsoon rains reached more than Php533-million, the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) said the granting of Php15,000 production subsidy for farmers is all the more necessary and immediate. Torrential rains and flooding due to Fabian caused severe effects to farmers in land preparation for the upcoming planting season. As the typhoon and monsoon season started, we can expect for more calamities affecting the agriculture and fisheries sector.

The government must find diligent ways to immediately give the P15,000 production subsidy to farmers and fisherfolk. We also urge Congress to include the production subsidy and cash aid demands of sectors in the 2022 national budget, especially as budget deliberations are due to start soon.

KMP said it will seek help from the Makabayan bloc for the filing of a proposed bill for the P15,000 production subsidy for farmers.

Based on the initial monitoring of the DA and the NDRRMC, the damage to agriculture covered 30,926 hectares of farm areas, with a total of 22,516 farmers affected. The initial volume of production loss is now estimated at 9,511 metric tons (MT) across the regions of Cordillera, Ilocos, Central Luzon, Calabarzon, Mimaropa, Bicol, and Western Visayas. Affected crops include rice, corn, high value crops, and livestock.

The initial agricultural losses for rice is at P489.03 million, with 7,890 MT of production volume lost and 29,206 hectares of agricultural lands affected. Damaged corn crops was valued at P26.06 million with a production loss of 986MT from at least 468 hectares of farmlands. Livestock and poultry losses reached P287,610 with a production volume loss of 97 heads consisting of swine, duck, and chicken. The figures are initial and could increase in the coming days. ###