PCA targets to plant over 25M coconut trees next year amid 100-million goal by 2028

The Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) said on Wednesday that 25.3 million coconut trees are expected to be planted next year as the government is aiming 100 million before the Marcos administration ends on 2028.

"It's still 25.3 [million]," said PCA Administrator and Chief Executive Officer Dexter Buted in a chance interview with reporters.

Since 2024, the PCA said that nearly 50 million coconut trees have been planted so far.

"We have planted 8.6 million in 2024, another 15.3 [million] in 2025, and for this year that's 25.3 [million]. If you add these tatlong taon na ito, about 50 million na ang dapat maitanim natin (If you add these three years, we should have planted about 50 million coconut trees already)," said Buted.

But the PCA chief noted that there will be a buffer to cover coconut trees that died, but still manage to reach the 100 million target.

"But we don't stay with the 100 million because we also put a buffer, because of the survival rate, at 15%. So may nakalaan kaming 15 to 20 million in a buffer para ma-target natin yung mga namatay, mapalitan natin, para at least maging 100 million yung magiging 100 million yung bearing fruits in the near future," said Buted.

(But we don't stay with the 100 million because we also put a buffer, because of the survival rate, at 15%. So we have allocated 15 to 20 million as a buffer so that we can target those that died and replace them, so that at least the ones bearing fruits in the near future will truly amount to 100 million.)

In his fifth State of the Nation Addresss, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said the government is targeting to plant 100 million coconut trees by 2028 to boost the country's coconut industry.

Data from the Philippine Statistics Authority as of the end of 2025 showed coconut production reached 14.506 million metric tons, slightly higher than 14.5 million MT in 2024. — BAP, GMA News