Agri farms multiplied over past decades
The Philippines has 7.43 million farms including those involved in crops as well as livestock and poultry operations as of 2022, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).
“Historically, the results of CAF (Census of Agriculture and Fisheries) from 1960 to 2022 show a consistent increase in the number of farms, based on reports from agricultural operators for each census reference period,” the PSA said in a report.
The total area of agricultural farms has steadily decreased since 1991, despite recording growth in the number of farms two years ago.
The statistics agency said the total farm area declined by 38.2 percent to 6.16 million hectares in 2022 from the peak of 9.97 million hectares in 1992.
“Even when compared to earlier years such as 1980 (9.73 million hectares) and 1970 (8.49 million hectares), the total farm area in 2022 remains substantially smaller,” it said. “Comparing 2022 to previous years underscores the extent of this decline.”
The average farm size decreased to 0.83 hectares in 2022 from 3.61 hectares in 1970 which, according to the PSA, becomes particularly clear when compared to 1.31 hectares in 2012 and 2.01 hectares in 2002.
Between 2012 and 2022, the total number of farms expanded by 33.4 percent, with individual or single proprietorships comprising 99.6 percent of the total.
The PSA also said that 98.7 percent of all farms in the country had sizes of less than seven hectares in 2022.
The PSA released this data based on reports it received from agricultural operators nationwide between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2022.
