DA assures strengthened support to banana industry
The needed technical, marketing and logistic support of the government was assured by the Department of Agriculture (DA) to strengthen the banana industry considering its big share contributed to the Philippine economy.
In 2005, banana production totaled 6.3 million metric tons from a total area of 418,000 hectares and valued at P43.5 billion.
This was learned from Agriculture Secretary Domingo F. Panganiban during the 2ND national Banana Marketing Conference in Davao City, recently.
The DA press report said that based on the Bureau of Agriculture Statistics, of the fifty percent total area planted to banana, Mindanao has produced 77 percent of total harvest at 4.84 million MT, valued at P34.5 billion. Southern Mindanao or the Davao region has dominated the industry in terms of productivity and value because of the several plantations in the area, Secretary Panganiban said.
According to Secretary Panganiban, the global market for bananas continues to expand to Europe which accounts 34%; United States- 29% and Japan- 7%, as top exporters.
Japan remains as the country's major market, buying 45 percent of our fresh bananas worth US$173 million, followed by South Korea- 12%, Iran- 11%, China- 10% and UAE- 9 percent, the DA press report said.
(PIA)