Meat, fish supply seen adequate for holiday season, Agri dep’t says

THE Department of Agriculture (DA) said it expects the supply of meat, fish and other foods to be sufficient for the year-end holidays.

“A big chunk of the supply comes from the locally-produced rice, and production of farmers will be enough to meet the demand towards the end of the year,” the department said in a press release.

According to the DA, the National Food Authority will ensure sufficient rice on the market by managing the buffer stock.

“Retail prices, however, might be affected by the ongoing drought in China due to its implications in the cost of palay production, as well as the presence of rice varieties from other countries,” it added, noting that domestic production will be substantial.

The total broiler supply for the year is 1.82 million metric tons (MT), of which 1.65 million MT is domestically produced, according to the department’s sufficiency outlook for the year.

“With the demand for broilers expected at around 1.64 million MT this year, consumers are assured that there will be a generous supply to last up to early 2023,” it added.

Meanwhile, the projected demand for pork is 1.79 million MT, or about 160,000 MT more than expected supply.

According to the DA, domestic pork production was estimated at 1.34 million MT, while 290,000 MT of pork was imported this year.

“The department is continuously working on maintaining the stability of prices and monitoring supply to help local producers produce enough for the demand,” the DA said.

The DA said it is working on implementing hotlines for immediate agri-fishery assistance among farmers and fisherfolk.

It is also developing an application that will serve as a realtime link between the DA and municipal agriculturists and a system for harvest timetables and market linkage requests.