Farm Investment Boosted by Budget Hikes, Agriculture Dept. Says

THE Department of Agriculture (DA) said agricultural investment benefited from progressively higher agricultural budgets since President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. took office. In a keynote address at the Economic Journalists Association of the Philippines’ Food Security Forum in Makati, Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel, Jr. highlighting the greater resources made available to the DA, from P117 billion in 2022 to P215 billion in 2026. It is proposing a P250-billion budget for 2027. Mr. Laurel made his remarks days ahead of the President’s fifth State of the Nation Address on July 27. “Investment is where reform begins. It buys tractors instead of excuses. It builds irrigation instead of promises. It funds laboratories, hatcheries, stock farms, cold chain facilities, post-harvest systems, and digital infrastructure,” Mr. Laurel said. “It turns research into productivity and productivity into lower food prices,” he added. Mr. Laurel noted that despite challenges such as erratic weather and lingering animal diseases, output for agriculture and fisheries grew 2.6% in 2025, while gross value added rose 3.1%. He highlighted the DA’s efforts to calibrate rice imports, expand government-subsidized KADIWA stores, introduce new maximum suggested retail prices, maximize the National Food Authority’s reserve inventory, and sell rice to vulnerable members of society for P20 per kilo. Mr. Laurel also noted the DA’s plans to invest in agricultural infrastructure such as mega food hubs, food terminals, modern agriports, and fish hatcheries. Mr. Laurel said the DA’s legislative program includes the Rice Industry and Consumer Empowerment Act and the Animal Industry Development and Competitiveness Act. Other highlights include the establishment of a vaccine development center at Central Luzon State University in Nueva Ecija, the expansion of the DA’s agricultural extension work force, and the launch of the Agricultural Command Center and the Agriculture-based Central Data Ecosystem platform. On the sidelines of the forum, Mr. Laurel said the DA continues to deter smuggling and profiteering, citing the more than 100 notices of violation of the P50 price cap on imported 5% broken rice. Alongside the Bureau of Customs (BoC), the DA has also aided in seizing misdeclared goods, smuggled cigarettes, and 200 tons worth of expired meat products. Mr. Laurel noted that while the DA has no enforcement power, the BoC has charged many violators. Mr. Laurel said the DA will also be overseeing the construction of farm-to-market roads for the first time, saying the program, inherited from the Public Works department, is expected to be “fast, complete, and very transparent.” Mr. Laurel said the remaining challenges include unirrigated lands, high logistics costs, underfunded research, and climate change, noting that agriculture’s share of gross domestic product declined to 7.9% in 2025 from 19% in 2005. — Marron Joshua F. Mendoza