Business group warns DA of lawsuits

ACTING Agriculture Secretary William Dar encouraged foreign and local investors to look at possible opportunities to help develop the agriculture industry in the Philippines, mainly through elevating the agribusiness sector.

Dar, during his speech at the Philippine-India Trade Consultations last week in Makati City, said he wanted the Indian government and agriculture-related companies to invest in the Philippines.

“There are still possibilities for unlocking the potential of agriculture and agribusiness in the country. We have to have just the right development strategy, which we now have put in place, anchored on the ‘ New Thinking for Philippine agriculture’”, he said.

The New Thinking strategy aims

stakeholders from the private sector to increase productivity and

sustainability and resilience. It has eight paradigms: modernization of agriculture, industrialization of agriculture, promotion of exports, farm consolidation, road map development, infrastructure development, higher budget and investments for agriculture, and legislative support.

“The very vision under that THE Philippine Chamber of Agri

warned the Department of Agriculture (DA) of possible lawsuits for refusing to enforce the special safeguard duty (SSG) on imported rice was that meant to protect the local rice industry against a surge of imports.

said granting farmers a onetime cash dole out of P3 billion instead of implementing SSG on rice imports is tantamount to “violating the law” itself that “may subject government authorities

for both the ERC and the DoE as the MoU formalizes and seals our collaboration toward[s] promotion and protection of consumer interest,” ERC Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer Agnes Devanadera said.

Under the nonbinding accord [the program] would be a foodsecure Philippines with prosper

this vision, we have to have an overarching [move] on increasing productivity and incomes with objectives of sustainability, resilience and many others,” Dar said.

He lamented that the growth of the Philippine agriculture for the last ten years has been “very anemic,” averaging 1.1 percent, while population growth rate was at 1.8 percent annually. This, he said,

terms of food security for the more

The agriculture sector accounted for about a tenth of the country’s gross domestic product in recent years. But Dar said, “if you include agribusiness contributing 25 percent, so the total of 34 percent is such a huge contribution to the economy.”

The Department of Agriculture (DA) was aiming to achieve 3.5- to 4-percent growth in the farm sector by 2022, surpassing the population growth rate of 1.8 percent. to [court] suits,” referring to Section 10 of Republic Act 11203,

states that, “in order to protect the Philippine rice industry from

- cial safeguard duty on rice shall be imposed.”

Acting Agriculture Secretary Wil

that the government decided to settle for a cash assistance program to save rice farmers from the very low prices of their (unmilled rice).

He also said the country’s economic managers ruled that imposing SSG duty on imported rice may

believes otherwise.

“The government really looks down on farmers. It is in bad faith to even argue that safeguards are

- pend the SSG anytime. That claim has no credence. They’re in bad faith for refusing to implement the law,” said Inciong.

He explained that imposing the SSG would not cause prices in the domestic market to soar unreasonably, because the 350,000-metric ton minimum access volume the Philippines imported is not covered by SSG duties.

applied on a shipment basis if a price trigger is utilized, Inciong said.

Once a shipment hits below trigger price, an SSG can immediately be applied, and if international rice prices soar and local production is not enough, the government can suspend the application of the SSG, he added.