AGRICULTURE may account for just a tenth of the Philippine economy, but the country is still counted among the world's top banana and pineapple exporters. That standing, however, is under threat given challenges ranging from plant diseases to politics.

As of last year, the Philippines remained the second-biggest banana exporter despite a 31-percent drop in shipments, value-wise. The country is still also number two on the pineapple exports list even as shipments fell by 7.6 percent. In volume terms the declines were bigger at 36.1 percent and 8.2 percent, respectively.