BFAR director Malcolm I. Sarmiento told Business Mirror that the growth assumes that no strong typhoons will ravage the Philippines for the rest of the year.
He added that the aquaculture sector will be at the centre of the growth in the fisheries industry.
He tolf Business Mirror that mariculture parks will contribute significantly to the subsector’s performance.
The report says that the fisheries subsector has been buoying farm growth in recent years. But production in January to March was down by 0.63 percent due to the extensive damage caused by El Niño.
The subsector accounted for almost 25 per cent of total farm output in the first quarter. Aquaculture posted a 0.36-per cent output increase. Commercial and municipal fisheries showed production falls of 3.5 per cent and 0.15 per cent. The gross value of fisheries production was P53.1 billion, down by 1.2 per cent on last year.
Fisheries Production to Grow
PHILIPPINES - The Philippines Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) expects fisheries production to grow by eight per cent for the whole of 2010.