FISH landed at regional fish ports grew 7.98% by volume quarter on quarter in the first three months of the year, the Philippine Fisheries Development Authority (PFDA) said.
In a bulletin, the PFDA said volumes amounted to 118,419.49 metric tons (MT).
The General Santos Fish Port Complex posted the top volume of 54,886.40 MT, equivalent to 46.35% of the national total.
Average daily unloading volume rose 231% to 3,947.3 MT.
“During Q1, all PFDA RFPs (regional fish ports) maintained a positive trend both in the quarterly number of vessel arrivals and the number of clients served,” the PFDA said.
“The ports opened their doors to 25,200 vessels and attended to 10,869 clients throughout the quarter,” it added.
Asis G. Perez, former director of the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources and convenor of Tugon Kabuhayan, attributed the performance to favorable weather and the end of closed fishing seasons in most areas.
“Whatever’s happening to these PFDA ports is reflective of what’s happening also in other areas,” he added.
The agency also reported that production of ice, which is used to preserve, dropped 36.54% to 5,327.53 MT. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera