AQUACULTURE remained the backbone of Davao City’s fisheries sector in the second quarter of 2026, accounting for nearly two-thirds of the city’s 935.27 metric tons of fishery production, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) Davao said in a September 23, 2026 release.
Aquaculture contributed 592.50 metric tons, or 63.4 percent of the city’s total fisheries output from April to June, according to the PSA’s quarterly fisheries data.
Commercial fisheries contributed 191.43 metric tons, or 20.5 percent, while municipal fisheries accounted for 151.34 metric tons.
Municipal fisheries included 142.31 metric tons from marine municipal fisheries and 9.03 metric tons from inland municipal fisheries.
Overall fisheries production, however, was lower than the 1,341.76 metric tons recorded in the second quarter of 2025. The PSA said Davao City’s second-quarter 2026 output represented 6.4 percent of the region’s total fisheries production.
Freshwater fishponds lead aquaculture
Freshwater fishponds emerged as the largest source of aquaculture production, generating 312.61 metric tons, or 52.8 percent of the subsector’s output.
Marine cages followed closely with 272.50 metric tons, or 46 percent.
Brackishwater fishponds contributed 7.19 metric tons, while small farm reservoirs accounted for 0.21 metric ton.
Milkfish leads top species
Milkfish, or bangus, led the city’s fisheries production by species, with 272.54 metric tons, equivalent to 29.1 percent of total output.
Catfish, or hito, followed with 251.85 metric tons, while tilapia ranked third with 64.49 metric tons.
Roundscad, or galunggong, posted 40.63 metric tons, followed by Bali sardinella or tamban at 21.27 metric tons.
Other leading species were Indian mackerel or alumahan, 14.13 metric tons; Caesio or dalagang-bukid, 12.04 metric tons; goatfish or saramulyete, 10.86 metric tons; P. vannamei or pasayan, 7.19 metric tons; and frigate tuna or tulingan, 6.9 metric tons.
The PSA noted that City of Davao fisheries data were aggregated with Davao del Sur beginning in the first quarter of 2022. The city was disaggregated from the province beginning in the first quarter of 2025.
The PSA conducts quarterly and monthly fisheries surveys to generate production data by species. The statistics support agricultural performance monitoring, national accounts, policymaking, and programs aimed at developing the fisheries sector. MLSA