Palace welcomes PSA report on 2017 banana output

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque, in a Palace briefing, noted that Philippine banana production in 2017 expanded by almost three percent to 9.166 million metric tons (MMT) from 8.903 MMT in 2016.

MANILA— Malacañang on Tuesday welcomed the report of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on the increase of the country’s 2017 banana production.

Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque, in a Palace briefing, noted that Philippine banana production in 2017 expanded by almost three percent to 9.166 million metric tons (MMT) from 8.903 MMT in 2016.

Citing the PSA report, Roque said that the growth could be attributed to the increase in area and number of bearing hills harvested from the plantation farms in northern Mindanao.

Moreover, additional expansion areas from corporate farms in Soccsksargen and relatively good weather last year also helped increase production.

Roque also welcomed the report of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) that a total of 545 farmer beneficiaries from seven municipalities in North Cotabato received their respective certificates of land ownership award over the weekend.

Figures from DAR show that a total of 849.2077 hectares of lands were covered during the distribution.

Duterte has earlier pushed for efforts to help the farmers in the country rise from poverty.