Six powerful storms late in the season that ravaged crops and drenched vast areas of the Philippines have put the nation on track for record rice imports and raised concerns over elevated food inflation.
From the end of October to mid-November, the storms repeatedly dumped heavy rain over northern regions grappling with widespread flooding and saturated soil that could not absorb any more water. The onslaught caused at least US$131 million of crop losses, with rice bearing the brunt of the damage.
The last time six tropical cyclones impacted the Philippines over a three-week period was in 1946, according to President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr, who said rice imports may climb to a record 4.5 million tonnes this year to fill supply gaps. The peak of the nation’s typhoon season is typically July through October.
“We don’t have anything to harvest any more because of the storms,” said Jespher Villegas, a rice farmer in the town of Gonzaga in Cagayan province. His entire crop was submerged by floodwaters and rain is continuing in the region, he added, with his corn and a tilapia fish farm also affected.
The Philippines is on the front line for typhoons in the Asia-Pacific, with around 20 tropical cyclones forming each year near the archipelago. Some storms make landfall, and some can track towards other countries in the region, soaking coffee crops in Vietnam and shutting stock trading in Taiwan.
Warm seas helped to fuel the most active season in the Western Pacific in seven decades this month, stirring up four typhoons, all of which made landfall in the Philippines. Even before the latest string of tropical cyclones, storms had sapped third-quarter growth and reduced rice production.
01:35
Tropical Storm Trami leaves tombs submerged in the Philippines
Tropical Storm Trami leaves tombs submerged in the Philippines
