Hanoi (VNA) – Leaders of the coconut industry of the Philippines have emphasised the need to build a sustainable supply and slow the conversion of land to oil palm cultivation in order to maintain the sector’s global competitiveness.
Coconut oil is a key agricultural export of the Philippines, but its prices can be highly volatile, such as when supply drops during storm seasons. Competition from alternative products like palm oil can also suppress demand for coconut oil.
The Philippine government has planned to establish more shared processing facilities to help farmers produce value-added products themselves. However, farmers still face the risk of bankruptcy when global prices drop sharply.
The government’s policy emphasises the need to focus on boosting domestic demand to shield the market from global price fluctuations, including increasing the share of coconut-based biodiesel in the mandated domestic fuel blend.
The Philippines is the world’s second-largest coconut producer after Indonesia, with coconut oil as its top agricultural export. Coconut oil is also included in the latest US tariff exemption. The Philippines exports around 2 billion USD worth of coconut products annually, supporting the livelihoods of about 3 million farmers. The government data show that as of 2023, the country has 3.6 million hectares of coconut plantations.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. announced his goal to plant 100 million coconut trees nationwide by 2028. However, the Philippine Coconut Authority stated that funding is currently insufficient for the replanting effort, which began in 2023. The large-scale coconut planting programme is halfway through, but only 10 million trees have been planted so far./.
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