Marinduque’s total volume of production of cereals for 2023 amounted to 19,188.00 metric tons, a decline of 4.16 percent from the 20,021.49 metric tons of the previous year.

In 2023, the province's cereal production was predominantly composed of Palay, accounting for 92.87 percent or 17,819.00 metric tons, while Corn constituted 7.13 percent or 1,369.00 metric tons. Similarly, in 2022, Palay dominated cereal production at 94.49 percent, amounting to 18,918.85 metric tons, while corn contributed 5.51 percent or 1,102.64 metric tons. 

In 2023, the overall palay production posted 17,819.00 metric tons, reflecting a 5.81 percent decrease compared to the previous year's total of 18,918.85 metric tons. Of the total palay production in 2023, 10,549.00 metric tons, accounting for 59.20 percent, consisted of irrigated palay, while rainfed palay comprised 7,270.00 metric tons or 40.80 percent.

Meanwhile, the overall Corn production in 2023 posted 1,369.00 metric tons indicating a 24.16 percent increase from the previous year’s production of 1,102.64 metric tons. Of the total corn production in 2023, white corn comprised 829.00 metric tons or 60.56 percent, while yellow corn accounted for 540.00 metric tons or 39.44 percent. 

In 2023, the overall harvested area for cereals posted 6,037.00 hectares, indicating a 3.39 percent decline from the 6,248.55 hectares in the previous year.

The majority of the province’s harvested area was dedicated to Palay, comprising 5,555.00 hectares or 92.02 percent, while corn covered 482.00 hectares or 7.98 percent of the total harvested area in 2023. Similarly, in 2022, the area allocated for Palay harvesting accounted for 5,823.89 hectares or 93.20 percent, while the area devoted to corn harvesting was 424.66 hectares or 6.80 percent.

In 2023, the overall area harvested for palay posted 5,555.00 hectares indicating a 4.62 percent decline from the 5,823.89 hectares of the previous year. Of the total area harvested for palay, 2,936.00 hectares or 52.85 percent was attributed to Irrigated Palay and 
2,619.00 hectares or 47.15 percent for Rainfed Palay.

Meanwhile, the total area harvested for corn was recorded at 482.00 hectares which is 13.50 percent higher than the previous year’s record of 424.66 hectares. Additionally, of the total area harvested for corn in 2023, 352.00 hectares, or 73.03 percent were dedicated to White Corn, while 130.00 hectares, or 26.97 percent were dedicated to yellow corn. 

The total yield of palay for 2023 stood at 3.21 metric tons per hectare, marking a decrease of 1.23 percent from the yield of 3.25 metric tons per hectare recorded in 2022. In contrast, corn's yield in 2023 reached 2.84 metric tons per hectare, showing an increase of 9.23 percent from the previous year's yield of 2.60 metric tons per hectare.

In 2023, irrigated palay exhibited a yield of 3.59 metric tons per hectare, surpassing the yield of rainfed palay. This represented a 2.18 percent decline from the previous year's yield of 3.67 metric tons per hectare. On the contrary, rainfed palay yielded 2.78 metric tons per hectare in 2023, showing a marginal improvement of 0.36 percent from the 2.77 metric tons per hectare recorded in 2022.

Yellow corn demonstrated a higher yield compared to white corn, registering 4.15 metric tons per hectare. This marked a 10.37 percent increase from the previous year's yield of 3.76 metric tons per hectare. In contrast, white corn yielded 2.36 metric tons per hectare in 2023, reflecting a 3.28 percent decrease from the 2.44 metric tons per hectare recorded in the previous year.

TECHNICAL NOTES

Data on cereals presented in this special release were obtained from the Palay and Corn Production Survey and Palay and Corn Stock Surveys conducted by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) on a quarterly basis.

DEFINITION OF TERMS

•    AREA HARVESTED - refers to the area from which a crop is gathered.
•    VOLUME OF PRODUCTION - refers to how much production of a specific product is required to satisfy its overall demand in the market.
•    YIELD – refers to the amount of a crop produced per unit of land.
•    IRRIGATED PALAY- Palay grown on this type has irrigation facilities that supply water to the farm through artificial means, like gravity, force/power, and pump. etc.
•    RAINFED PALAY-Palay which is grown on this type has dikes that retain water and is solely dependent upon rainfall for its water supply.
•    WHITE CORN - White corn is the most common type of sweet corn that has creamy and white kernels. Used primarily for human consumption.
•    YELLOW CORN - Yellow corn is a variety of sweet corn. Its ears are wrapped in tightly bound lime-hued husks with silks and a tassel that extends out from the tip. The yellow kernels are packed in tight uniform rows. Generally used as feed grain which includes all types of corn other than white, 
 

(SGD)GEMMA N. OPIS
Chief Statistical Specialist