Plantation Economy in

Philippines
Prasanna Pradhan| Sujeet Kumar
Topics to be covered
• Concept of Plantation
• Concept of Plantation Economy
• Benefits and Critic of Plantation Economy
• Philippines as Plantation Economy
– General Overview
– Economy
– Geographic
– Plantation Crops of Philippines
– Coconuts Plantation
• Quick Review
 Concept of Plantation

• A plantation is a large farm or estate, usually in a tropical or

subtropical country, where crops are grown for sale in distant
markets, rather than for local consumption.
• A plantation is always a monoculture over a large area and does not
include extensive naturally occurring stands of plants that have
economic value.
• Because of its large size,
– A plantation takes advantage of economies of scale.
– Protective policies and natural qualified advantage have contributed to
determining where plantations have been located.
• Earlier forms of plantation agriculture were associated with:
– large disparities of wealth and income,
– foreign ownership,
– political influence,
– Exploitative social systems such as indentured labor and slavery.
 Concept of Plantation Economy

• A plantation economy is an economy which is based on agricultural

mass production, usually of a few staple products grown on large
farms called plantations.
• Plantation economies rely on the export of cash crops as a source
of income. Prominent plantation crops have included cotton, rubber,
sugar cane, tobacco, figs, rice, kapok, sisal and indigo.
• Regions with plantation economies have usually been in the
southern United States, South America, the Caribbean, and Africa.
• Plantation economies usually benefit the large countries to which
they are exporting, which usually manufacture the raw materials
grown on the plantations into goods which are then traded back to
the plantation economy.
 Benefits and Critic of Plantation Economy

Benefits of Plantation
– Economies of scale
– Large employment opportunities
– Plantation and natural loss to forest
New Zealand, where 19% of the forest area provides 99% of the supply of industrial round
wood. It has been estimated that the world’s needs for fiber could be met by just 5% of the
world forest
Criticism of Plantation:
– Ecological Impact
– Plantations and natural forest loss
– Attracts Slavery
According to U.S. Census figures, in 1860 one out of every four families in Virginia owned
slaves. There were over 100 plantation owners that owned over 100 slaves.
 General Overview of Philippines

• a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean

• its tropical climate make the Philippines prone to earthquakes and
typhoons
• endowed with natural resources and made it one of the richest
areas of biodiversity in the world
• comprising 7,107 islands
• estimated population of about 92 million people,
world's 12th most populous country
• predominantly a rural society with 70% of its population, agriculture
is the basic livelihood of the rural sector.
• provides employment to about 9.6 million,who make up one half of
the total labor force.
 Economy of Philippines

• 48th largest economy in the world, with an estimated GDP of $161 billion in

2009.
• Primary exports include
– semiconductors and electronic products,
– transport equipment,
– garments,
– copper products,
– petroleum products,
– coconut oil and fruits.
• Major trading partners include China, Japan, and the United States.
• Transitioning from agriculture to services and manufacturing.
• total labor force accounts for 38.1 million, the agricultural sector employs
close to 32% but contribution towards GDP is 13.8%.
Geography of Philippines

• The Country is divided in to three major groups

namely:
– Luzon,
– Visayas and
– Mindanao.
• There are four types of climate base on rainfall.
• Of the total rainfall recorded annually, 47% is
attributed to the occurrence of the tropical
cyclones.
• annual humidity ranges from 74% to 85%
• annual mean temperature is between 19.5°C to
28°C
• annual rainfall ranges from 1,893 to 3,855.2
millimeters.
 Plantation Crops of Philippines

• Among the plantation crops cultivated in the Philippines are

– Coconut
– Rubber
– Cacao
– Sugarcane
– Abaca
– Essential Oil
 Coconut Plantation in Philippines

• world's second largest producer of coconut products, after

Indonesia.
• In 1989 it produced 11.8 million tons.
• In 1989, coconut products, coconut oil, copra (dried coconut)
• Desiccated coconut accounted for approximately 6.7 % of
exports.
• Between 25 % and 33 % of the population partly depends on
coconuts for their livelihood
 Coconut Plantation in Philippines (Continued)

• Western Mindanao and Southern Mindanao became important coconut-

growing regions.
• coconut industry employees less educated and older than the average
person in the rural labor force and earned lower-than-average incomes.
• provided investment incentives to increase the construction of coconut oil
mills (28 in 1968 to 62 in 1979)
• In 1973, the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) was formed (empowered
to collect a levy of P0.55 per 100 kilograms). In 1974, the government
created the Coconut Industry Development Fund (CIDF) to finance the
development of a hybrid coconut tree. To finance the project, the levy was
increased to P20.
• In 1975 the PCA acquired a bank, renamed the United Coconut Planters
Bank, to service the needs of coconut farmers,
• In 1980, it has became an industry composed of some 0.5 million farmers
and 14,000 traders
 Quick Review

The above article or study could be summarized as the plantation

economy:

– Helps to develop any country’s economy having limited land resources

– Generates a huge employment opportunities for rural population
– Helps to grow the GDP of the economy
– Attracts exports-imports
– Promotes sustainable development