Philippines to reap record rice harvest

MANILA, Philippines (Xinhua) - The Department of Agriculture (DA) expects to produce record riceharvest in the first semester of 2011 as a result of the good weather, the country's agriculture department said in a statement on Saturday.

The DA said Cagayan Valley is seen producing 1.22 million tons of palay in the six-month period or 31.4 percent more than last year's output.

Corn harvest meanwhile is expected to top 852,24 tons, 114 percent more than last year's yield of 397,42 tons.

"Cagayan Valley's record rice and corn harvests buttresses government's goal to attain self-sufficiency in rice by the end of 2013," the DA said.

Cagayan Valley ranks third behind Central Luzon and Western Visayas in terms of Philippines' riceproduction.

Despite being an agricultural nation, the Philippines is one of the world's biggest rice importers.

Source: http://www.philstar.com/Article.aspx?articleId=688394&publicationSubCategoryId=200