The country’s rice output this year is expected to exceed last year’s record high as more farmers plant the staple due to higher buying prices for palay.

Citing data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol posted on his Facebook page that with the first quarter output exceeding last year’s, it is likely that total output may hit another record-high this year.

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In 2017, the country’s rice production reached 19.26 million metric tons (MT), which Piñol said “was the highest in the country’s history.”

During the first quarter this year, rice production reached 4.62 million MT from 4.41 million MT in the same period last year, PSA data showed.

PSA said the increase could be attributed to favorable weather conditions as fewer typhoons hit the country in the first three months.

The buying price for palay also hit the P21-mark for the first time in two years, encouraging farmers to plant more rice.

According to Piñol, the agency aims to produce 95 to 96 percent of the country’s total national rice requirement, with the remainder to be imported as part of the Philippines’ commitment to the World Trade Organization.

Piñol added that he was banking on the introduction and use of solar-powered irrigation systems across the country to sustain the steady increase in the country’s rice production.

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