Corn imports seen rising next year

The Philippines is expected to ramp up corn imports by as much as 16.5 percent in the current marketing year (MY) following a decline in local production due to recent typhoons, according to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

- By DEXTER BARRO II

In a report by its Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) in Manila, the USDA expects the country’s corn imports to reach 1.85 million metric tons (MT) in MY 2025-2026, compared with 1.76 million MT in the previous year.

The current MY started in July and will end in June next year.

The new estimate is 5.7-percent higher than the USDA’s initial forecast of 1.75 million MT.

Higher projected corn imports are attributed to lower local output following the impact of several typhoons from July to November.