Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOusE BLL NOo4591

Introduced by Honorable Michael L. Romero and Enrico A. Pineda

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Agriculture in the Philippines employs 30% of the Filipino workforce as of 2013,
according to World Bank statistics. Agriculture accounts for 12% gt Filipino GDP.
as of 2013, according to the World Bank.

Agricultural Products:

Rice:
Rice production in the Philippines

The Philippines is the 8th largest rice producer in the world, accounting for 2.8%
of global rice production. The Philippines was also the world's largest! rice
importer in 2010. In 2010, nearly 15.7 million metric tons of palay (pre-husked rice)
were produced. In 2010, palay accounted for 21.86% percent of gross value
added in agriculture and 2.37% of GNP. Self-sufficiency in rice reached 88.93% in
2015,

Rice production in the Philippines has grown significantly since the 1950s
Improved varieties of rice developed during the Green Revolution, including at
the International Rice Research Institute based in the Philippines have improved
crop yields. Crop yields have also improved due to increased use of fertilizers.
Average productivity increased from 1.23 metric tons per hectare in 1961 to 3.59
metric tons per hectare in 2009

Harvest Yields have increased significantly by using foliar fertilizer (Rc62 -> 27%
increase, Rc80 -> 40% increase, Rcé4 -> 86% increase) based on PhilRice
National Averages.


Sugar:
Sugar industry of the Philippines

Raw Sugar produced in a mill in the country.

There are at least 19 provinces and 11 regions that produce sugarcane in the
Philippines. A range from 360,000 to 390,000 hectares are devoted !o sugarcane
production. The largest sugarcane areas are found in Negros which accounts
for 51% of sugarcane areas planted. This is followed by Mindanao which
accounts for 20%; Luzon, 17%; Panay islands, 7% and Eastern Visayas, 4%. It is
estimated that as of 2012, the industry provides direct employment to 700,000
sugarcane workers spread across 19 sugar producing provinces.

Sugar growing in the Philippines pre-dates Spanish contact. Sugar became the
most important agricultural export of the Philippines between the late
eighieenth century and the mid-1970s. During the 1950s and 60s, more than 20
percent income of Philippine exports came from the sugar industry. Between
1913 and 1974, the Philippines sugar industry enjoyed favoured terms of trade
with the US, with special access to the protected and subsidized U.S. sugar
market.

Coconuts:
Coconut production in the Philippines

Coconuts play an important role in the national economy of the Philippines.
According to figures published in December 2009 by the Food and Agriculiure
Organization of the United Nations, it is the world's largest producer of coconuts,
producing 19,500,000 tonnes in 2009. Production in the Philippines is generally
concentrated in medium-sized farms. There are 3.5 million hectares dedicated
to coconut production in the Philippines, which accounts for 25% of total
agricultural land in the country. In 1989, it was estimated that between 25% and
33% of the population was at least parlly dependent on coconuts for their
livelinood. Historically, the Southern Tagalog and Bicol regions of Luzon and the
Eastern Visayas were the centers of coconut production. In the 1980s, Western
Mindanao and Southern Mindanao also became important coconut-growing
regions.

Abaca:

According to the Philippine Fiber Industry Development Authority, the Philippines
provided 87.4% of the world’s abaca in 2014, earning the Philippines US$111.33
million. The demand is still greater than the supply. The remainder came from
Ecuador (12.5%) and Costa Rica (0.1%). The Bicol region in the Philippines
produced 27,885 metric tons of abaca in 2014, the largest of any Philippine
region. The Philippine Rural Development Program (PROP) and the Deparment


of Agriculture reported that in 2009-2013, Bicol Region had 39% share of
Philippine abaca production while the overwhelming 92% comes from the
Catanduanes Island. Eastern Visayas, the second largest producer had 24% and
the Davao Region, the third largest producer had 11% of the total production.
Around 42 percent of the total abaca fiber shipments from the Philippines went
to the United Kingdom in 2014, making it the top importer. Germany imported
37.1 percent abaca pulp from the Philippines, importing around 7,755 metric
tons (MT). Sales of abaca cordage surged 20 percent in 2014 to a total of 5,093
MT from 4,240 MT, with the United States holding around 68 percent of the
market.

Fruit:

The Philippines is the world’s third largest producer of pineapples, producing
more than 2.4 milion of tonnes in 2013.The Philippines was in the top
three banana producing countries in 2010, including India and China. Davao
and Mindanao contribute heavily to the lotal national banana crop. Mangoes
are the third most imporlant fruit crop of the country based on exporl volume
and value nex! fo bananas and pineapples.

Corn:

Com is the second most important crop in the Philippines. 600,000 farm
households are employed in different businesses in the corn value chain, As of
2012, around 2.594 Million ha of land is under corn cultivation and the total
production is 7.408 million metric ton (MMT).

Rubber:

There are an estimated 38,000 families dependent upon the cultivation
of rubber trees. Rubber is mainly planted in Mindanao, with some plantings in
Luzon and the Visayas. As of 2013, the total rubber production is 111,204 tons.

This House Bill seeks to provide the Department of Agriculture (DA) with
additional funding and allotments to further improve and perform its mandate.

Earnest approval of this bill is hereby requested

y
Yel ( y
ICHAEL L. ROMERO Ph.D ENRICO A! PINEDA


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. 4591

Introduced by Honorable Michael L. Romero and Enrico A. Pineda

AN ACT

PROVIDING THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE (DA) WITH ADDITIONAL
FUNDING, INCREASING ITS YEARLY ALLOTMENT IN THE GENERAL
APPROPRIATIONS ACT (GAA), AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in Congress
Assembled:

SECTION 1. Declaration of Policy - The Department of Agriculture (DA)
shall hereby be provided an additional Twenty billion pesos (P20,000,000,000.00)
to promote all related measures to modernize and improve the agriculture and
fisheries sector.

The Department is hereby authorized {0 re-align its appropriations, in the
current year of the date of the effectivity of this Act to conform with its
mandate.

SECTION 2, Continuing Appropriation. - The Departmen! of Budget and
Management (D8M) is hereby mandated fo include annually in the next six (6)
years, in the President's Program of expenditures for submission to Congress, and
release, an additional amount of Twenty billion pesos (P20,000,000,000.00) for
the implementation of this Act


SECTION 3. Periodic Reports- The Oversight Committee shall submit
periodic reports on its findings and make recommendations on actions fo be
taken by Congress and Senate and the appropriate department, and in order
to carry out the objectives and mandates of this Act, an additional amount of
Twenty billion pesos (P20,000,000,000.00) is hereby appropriated,

SECTION 4, Automatic Review - Every three (3) years after the effectivity of
this Act, an independent review committee composed of Subject Matter
Experts (SMEs) to be appointed by the President shall review the policies and
programs of the Department of Agriculture (DA) and shall hereinafter make
recommendations, based on its findings, to the President and to both Houses of
Congress.

SECTION 5. Repealing Clause. All laws, executive orders, issuances, rules
and regulations inconsistent with this Act are hereby amended, repealed or
modified accordingly.

SECTION 6. Separability Clause. If, for any reason or reasons, any portion
or provision of this Act shall be held unconstitutional or invalid,.the remait
provisions not affected thereby shall continue to be in full force and effect.

SECTION 7. Effectivity Clause. This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days
after ils publication in any newspaper of general circulation.

Approved,