Coconut Remains King in Production While Export Growth Lags Behind
Coconut remained Mindanao’s leading agricultural commodity from 2019 to 2023, holding its top position despite minor year-to-year variations in production.
This is according to the Mindanao in Figures 2024 report by the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA), which compiles key macroeconomic indicators across the island.
During the five-year period, Mindanao produced a total of 44.6 million metric tons (MT) of coconut. In 2023, output slightly declined to 8.96 million MT from 9.01 million MT in 2022.
Despite the drop, coconut continued to dominate the region’s crop production.Bananas followed as the second most produced crop with a cumulative output of 38.22 million MT over the same period.
Other major crops included palay (22.40 million MT), sugarcane (21.87 million MT), corn (21.24 million MT), and pineapple (12.52 million MT).
Additional significant outputs came from cassava (9.94 million MT), oil palm (2.44 million MT), rubber (2.08 million MT), mango (1.35 million MT), abaca (143,145 MT), coffee (125,574 MT), and cacao (44,157 MT). Combined, these 13 crops generated a total of 176.94 million MT from 2019 to 2023.
However, in terms of export value, bananas surpassed coconut as Mindanao’s top agricultural export in 2023. Fresh and dried bananas, including plantains, earned $1.22 billion in Free on Board (FOB) value, while coconut exports brought in $920.37 million.
Despite higher production, coconut lagged in export earnings—underscoring the need for enhanced value-adding in the coconut sector.
MinDA also highlighted that metallic minerals are among the region’s major export products. The agency explained that the FOB trade term marks the transfer of ownership and responsibility for goods from the seller to the buyer, typically at the point of shipment.
MinDA Assistant Secretary Romeo Montenegro emphasized Mindanao’s critical role in national food production and export performance. To boost global competitiveness, he urged the region to scale up agricultural production and align practices with global standards, citing Thailand and Singapore as benchmarks.
He reiterated that agriculture remains a core component of MinDA’s development agenda, which includes expanding agribusiness, strengthening value chains, and enhancing coastal resource management.
In the Davao Region, agriculture remains a vital economic contributor, though it accounted for only 14.5% of the regional economy in 2023.
According to SunStar Davao, the sector added ₱147.18 billion to the ₱1.02 trillion gross regional domestic product (GRDP), reflecting a modest 0.6% year-on-year increase. This relatively small share points to persistent structural challenges and increasing climate-related risks.
Extreme weather events linked to the El Niño phenomenon—such as droughts, floods, and heat waves—have significantly disrupted agricultural productivity across Mindanao. MinDA warned that these conditions are undermining both yields and farmer livelihoods, threatening regional food security.
In response, the agency is promoting climate-resilient farming practices and investing in infrastructure improvements to bolster resilience against environmental shocks.
At the same time, there is a growing push toward high-value and value-added agricultural products. In support of this transition, the Department of Trade and Industry in Davao del Norte and MinDA hosted a Mindanao-wide Coconut Farmers Cooperative Summit.
The event promoted downstream industries such as virgin coconut oil, coconut water, and coco coir—products with strong export potential, particularly under the EU’s GSP+ preferential trade scheme.
Supporting these efforts are research and development programs focused on organic agriculture. One such initiative, funded by the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), is a ₱53 million project aimed at improving the production and processing of organic cacao and durian.
While these crops have lower production volumes, they are viewed as high-potential exports if properly developed.
Coconut remains the cornerstone of Mindanao’s agricultural output, but the region’s long-term progress depends on embracing modernization, advancing climate adaptation, and adding value to its products.
With continued support from MinDA, local governments, and international partners, Mindanao’s agriculture sector is poised to grow into a more resilient and globally competitive economy.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is Free on Board (FOB) value?
Free on Board (FOB) is a trade term used in international shipping that indicates when ownership of goods transfers from the seller to the buyer. The FOB value includes the cost of the goods and their transport to the point of shipment. It is a standard for valuing exports, such as Mindanao’s bananas and coconuts. This metric helps assess a product’s competitiveness in the global market.
What is value-adding in agriculture?
Value-adding refers to processes that enhance a raw agricultural product’s market value, such as turning coconuts into virgin coconut oil or cassava into flour. These practices increase profitability, reduce post-harvest waste, and open access to export markets. It’s central to MinDA’s development strategy for making Mindanao’s agriculture globally competitive in 2025.
What is the EU’s GSP+ trade program?
The European Union’s GSP+ (Generalized Scheme of Preferences Plus) allows eligible developing countries to export certain goods duty-free to EU markets. For Mindanao, products like coconut oil or organic cacao can enter Europe with reduced tariffs if they meet specific human rights and environmental standards. This opens up valuable trade opportunities for agri-based SMEs in 2025.
What is climate-resilient farming?
Climate-resilient farming involves techniques and systems that help crops and farmers adapt to climate stressors like droughts, floods, and extreme heat. In Mindanao, this includes diversified cropping, better irrigation, and early warning systems. Given the impact of El Niño in 2025, such practices are increasingly crucial to protect food security and rural incomes.
How is El Niño affecting agriculture in 2025?
The 2024–2025 El Niño event has brought extreme weather across Southeast Asia, including prolonged droughts and sporadic flooding in Mindanao. This has disrupted planting schedules and reduced yields, especially in water-sensitive crops like rice and sugarcane. Governments and agencies like MinDA are promoting adaptive measures to reduce these impacts.
What is a Cooperative Summit?
A Cooperative Summit is a gathering of farmer cooperatives, stakeholders, and policymakers to discuss collective goals, share innovations, and coordinate action. The 2025 Mindanao Coconut Farmers Cooperative Summit focused on boosting downstream industries like coco coir and VCO. It promotes knowledge exchange and strengthens the role of farmer groups in agribusiness.
What is the GRDP (Gross Regional Domestic Product)?
GRDP measures the total economic output of a specific region, similar to GDP but on a smaller scale. In 2023, Davao Region’s GRDP was ₱1.02 trillion, with agriculture contributing just 14.5%. This statistic helps gauge agriculture’s role in the regional economy and informs policies on sectoral support and investments in 2025.
What are downstream industries in agriculture?
Downstream industries refer to businesses involved in processing raw farm products into market-ready goods. For coconuts, this includes virgin coconut oil, desiccated coconut, and coco sugar. These industries are essential for job creation, higher export earnings, and stronger rural economies, and are a focal point of MinDA’s push in 2025.
What is agricultural export competitiveness?
This refers to how well a country’s agricultural products perform in international markets based on factors like cost, quality, and trade access. In 2025, bananas remain Mindanao’s top export in value due to strong global demand and efficient logistics, while coconut’s lower export value highlights the need for better product development and marketing.
What is agribusiness scale-up?
Agribusiness scale-up involves expanding the operations of farms or agri-enterprises to reach higher efficiency and profitability. This can mean adopting mechanization, improving supply chains, or accessing bigger markets. MinDA and other Philippine agencies are prioritizing scale-ups in 2025 to boost productivity and rural employment amid global competition.
