The Philippines is a rich country because it has fertile soil and a pleasant climate. The country’s chief agricultural products are rice, corn, coconut, hemp (abaca), cane sugar, copra, tobacco, banana, and sweet potato (camote). Rice is the staple food of most Filipinos.
The leading corn producing provinces in the country are Cebu and Cotabato. The third most important Philippine crop is coconut. Laguna, Quezon, and Samar are our leading coconut-producing provinces. Among the countries of the world, the Philippines is one of the leaders in the production of coconut, hemp, cane sugar, and tobacco. The cultivation of wheat, grapes, and other products of the temperate zone has been successfully started in the country, particularly in Baguio, La Union, Ilocos Sur, and in the case of grapes, Cebu.
Because of the country’s extensive fertile land, farming is the most important source livelihood of the Filipinos. Livestock-raising is another important industry in the country. Almost every family in our rural areas raises cattle, poultry, and hogs.
Forests constitute one of the richest natural resources of the Philippines. More than half of the country is covered with forest. Nipa palm and mangrove trees grow in many coastal areas. Tropical rain forests grow in both the lowland and the upland. Many of the trees that grow there have a high value in the world market. Our forests yield lots of timber and other forest products such as dye woods, rattan, bamboo, cutch, resin, gutta-percha, and valuable gums and fibers. However, due to the illegal denuding of large areas of our forests, the continued production of these forests, the continued production of these forest items is seriously threatened.
Of the 3,000 species of trees in the Philippine forests, the following are in the greatest demand in construction jobs: apitong. Guijo, white and red lauan, ipil, tangile, tindalo, yakal, narra, and the world-famous “Philippine mahogany”-molave.
Our country is a fisherman’s paradise. Lakes, rivers, and the seas surrounding the islands of our archipelago teem with more than 2,000 species of fish. Because of this, a great many Filipinos fish for their livelihood. Among the fish commercially bought and sold in our markets are the following: bangos (milkfish), dalag (murrel), dilis, hito (catfish), kanduli, tulingan, banak, tamban, talakitok (skipjack),dalagang bukid, bisugo, galunggong, tanguige (mackerel), and lapulapu (grouper). The richest fishing areas in the country include Estancia, in Iloilo, the waters off northern Palawan and off the Bicol Peninsula, Laguna de bay, and Samar.
Other marine products that abound in the in the Philippine archipelago and are of great commercial value are pearls, edible birds, seaweeds, crabs, shrimps, and turtle eggs. Rare and expensive pearls are found in the waters off Palawan and the Sulu archipelago. There are abundant seaweed resources around our extensive coral reefs. Some seaweeds are used for valuable food and are a high-earning export product.
- Agriculture & Agricultural wealth
- Forests & Forests wealth
- Fish & Marine wealth
- Minerals & Mineral wealth
