Gains from tariffs on corn imports eyed for subsidies

HOUSE Ways and Means Chairman Joey Sarte Salceda is urging agriculture officials to consider using tariff revenues from imported corn as feed subsidies for chicken layer growers.

“At any given time, you are looking at tariff revenues of P1.9 billion for corn imports. We could funnel that back to the egg and chicken meat production sector. I would say egg production is more important. We can import chickens; we can’t easily import eggs,” Salceda said.

The solon believes that the alleged smuggling of frozen meat is causing domestic farms to reduce total poultry populations, resulting in egg supply levels “not enough to undercut abuses in the trading sector.”

“It’s still mostly a trading problem, given that farm gate [price] is still relatively low; but you need an abundance of supply to undercut the efforts of cartels to control prices.”

Salceda added that “the egg problem is partly an offspring of the chicken problem.”

“Traders abusing prices appears to be the leading cause, but I can’t discount the fact that the decline in population of chickens is also to blame for this,” he said.

Earlier this month, Philippine Egg Board President Irwan Ambal said there was a 20-percent drop in the population of chicken layers in Luzon since January last year, largely due to the avian flu outbreak.

Threat

SALCEDA said that continued smuggling and undervaluation of chicken imports will cause poultry farms to downsize or close down, threatening the egg supply.

“There is definitely a connection between ensuring that imported chicken meat tariffs are imposed and keeping our domestic egg sector viable. We can import frozen chicken meat; but eggs are much harder to import. So we need a good domestic supply base,” Salceda said.

The lawmaker explained that the country doesn’t have the option of resorting to imported eggs if domestic egg prices shoot up.

“So, we really need to tamp down the abuses in the trading sector, and to ensure that we have enough egg supply,” Salceda said.

The lawmaker added that keeping egg prices cheap will be critical to fighting malnutrition.

“Eggs, per gram, are the cheapest available source of protein for Filipino families,” he said. “High protein prices have been attributed to low PISA performance. If you have expensive egg prices, you could see learning poverty worsen.”

Salceda said this problem is a matter of urgent national importance and the government should act now on egg prices before farm gate prices begin to rise.

“Right now, it’s still mostly a trader issue, but if domestic chicken supply worsens, farmgate egg prices will rise—and that will be much harder to fight,” he added.