Damage to the agriculture sector of Western Visayas due to typhoon Ursula (international name: Phanfone) has exceeded P265 million as of Jan. 3 with more than half accounted for by rice crops and facilities, according to the assessment of the Department of Agriculture-Regional Field Office 6 (DA-RFO). The typhoon, which brought heavy rains to the Visayas and parts of Luzon in late December, destroyed P156 million worth of rice crops in the region, affecting 21,026 farmers. Western Visayas was the third-biggest rice-producing region in 2018 with output of 2.23 million metric tons, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). Other affected crops were corn and vegetables as well as agri-fisheries, and swine, goats, chicken and cattle worth at least P66 million.

Santiagudo, E. R. (2020, January 6). Agriculture damaged in Western Visayas estimated at P265M. BusinessWorld, p. S2/7.