The province of Pangasinan shared 56.2 percent of the total palay production of Region I in 3rd quarter 2018. Its output went down from 102,239 metric tons in 3rdquarter 2017 to 85,641 metric tons this year. The province was affected by prolonged habagat during the period. The harvest area decreased from 22,942 hectares to 21,083 hectares, while the overall yield per hectare dropped from 4.46 metric tons to 4.06 metric tons.

The province of Ilocos Norte, which ranked second in terms of volume of palay production in 3rd quarter 2018, recorded lower output as compared in 3rd quarter 2017. From the production of 35,307 metric tons, it went down to 30,542 metric tons due to lodging brought by heavy rains and strong winds during the occurrence of Typhoon Ompong. In addition, some grains harvested were unfilled. The harvest area expanded due to early harvesting. However, the yield per hectare decline from 5.00 metric tons to 3.58 metric tons.

Palay production in Ilocos Sur grew by 4.2 percent in 3rd quarter 2018. From the output of 20,853 metric tons in the same period in 2017, it went up to 21,730 metric tons due to the increased in area harvested because of early harvesting especially those that lodged during the occurrence of Typhoon Ompong. However, the overall yield per hectare dropped from 4.71 metric tons to 4.02 metric tons.

For the province of La Union, palay production also increased by 27.4 percent in 3rd quarter 2018. From the production of 11,426 metric tons in 3rd quarter 2017, it went up to 14,552 metric tons this year. Increased plantings due to early occurrence of rains were noted. However, the overall yield per hectare went down from 4.79 metric tons to 4.19 metric tons.

The province of Pangasinan registered a production of 2,795 metric tons in 3rdquarter 2018. This estimate is lower by 8.5 percent from the production recorded in the same quarter in 2017. Lesser plantings were observed due to frequent rains during the planting period. The overall yield per hectare also decreased from 4.60 metric tons to 4.44 metric tons due to flooding caused by habagat during the period.

CornproductionofIlocosNortedecreasedfrom2,062metrictonsin3rd quarter 2017 to 1,424 metric tons this 3rd quarter 2018. Lesser plantings were noted due to unavailability of planting materials, and some were damaged during the occurrence of Typhoon Ompong. Thus, the area decreased from 555 hectares to 375 hectares. Meanwhile, the overall yield per hectare grew from 3.72 metric tons to 3.80 metric tons due to increased usage of high-quality seeds.

The province of La Union registered lower corn production in the 3rd quarter 2018 as compared from its level a year ago. From 1,059 metric tons volume of production last year, it went down to 525 metric tons this year, as some areas were not planted due to heavy rains. The overall yield per hectare also declined from 3.55 metric tons to 3.14 metric tons.