DA acts to stop overpricing
SRP policy for basic goods set to be signed on June 25
The Department of Agriculture (DA) will impose a suggested retail price (SRP) for key agriculture commodities – 139 per kilo on regular milled rice; 1150 per kilo on milkfish; 1100 per kilo on tilapia; 1140 per kilo on galunggong; 170 per kilo on imported garlic; 1120 per kilo on local garlic; 195 per kilo on red onion; and 175 per kilo on white onion – effective June 25, 2018.
Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol is scheduled to sign on Monday the SRP policy, which will be reviewed every two weeks.
“We will continuously moni
tor the prices in the market,” Piñol said. We don't want to see abnormal movements in the price of the market.”
As per the existing guidelines, the government imposes a penalty of 11,000 to 11 million for those who would sell products beyond their respective SRPs.
The imposition of SRPs aims to protect consumers from overpricing in the market.
It also forms part of the government's effort to address the rising prices of basic crops, which is being blamed on the Tax Reform Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Law — the first tax reform to be implemented in the Philippines in many years.
Right now, businessmen are said to be using the TRAIN Law as an excuse to jack up the prices of the agriculture commodities they are selling.
"They are blaming the TRAIN Law, they are blaming the oil price hike. They will always have a way of justifying the increase in the price of the items in the market," Piñol had earlier said.
The proposal to put SRPs on food products like pork and poultry products is not new. In 2014, the DA made the same proposal to ensure that there's a stable supply of meat during holidays when consumption is usually up.
This was backed by agriculture lobby group Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (Sinag), which said that the prevailing retail prices for these commodities are normally way higher than the farm gate prices.
Meanwhile, Piñol is still pushing for the implementation of a new rice packaging system which will require millers to sell their rice by per kilo packaging.
"It's a proposal that is being studied and we will have to consult the stakeholders first. We will present to them. Within the year, we have to do it," he added.
He said that while this move might increase the price of rice, this will make sure that the rice being sold in the local market are safe for consumption and can be traced easily.