Agriculture damage from ‘Goring’ hits P898.4 million
AGRICULTURAL damage caused by Typhoon Goring (international name: Saola) has been estimated at P898.4 million, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said over the weekend.
In a bulletin, the DA said 24,457 farmers reported damage to their crops, with lost volume at 39,011 metric tons (MT) of crops across 34,979 hectares of farmland.
The weekend bulletin contained updated reports from the Cagayan Valley and the Western Visayas, raising the tally from P504.4 million as of Sept. 1.
Damage to the rice crop was valued at P751.5 million, volume losses were 29,337 MT across 29,255 hectares. Rice losses accounted for 83.6% of the damage caused by the typhoon.
Corn damage was estimated at P139.2 million from volume losses of 9,466 MT spanning 5,693 hectares.
High-value crop losses were estimated at P5.5 million on volume of 207 MT; livestock and poultry P2.3 million, including 916 animals and birds.
The DA said that P100 million worth of rice, corn, and assorted vegetable seed was ready to be disbursed to farmers, in addition to medicine for livestock and poultry.
Meanwhile, the department said that it will also provide up to P25,000 in zero-interest loans payable over three years in affected areas. — Adrian H. Halili
