FOOD SUPPLY SUFFICIENT, SAYS DAR
Despite mobility restrictions due to the enhanced and general community quarantine status in Metro Manila and other provinces, Agriculture Secretary William Dar assured the country of sufficient supply of basic food commodities.
“We thank our farmers, fishers, and other players in the food value chain for their continuing labor and resilience. Based on our inventory and projections, our food supply situation remains on the optimistic side, even as we are under [lockdown] status. Hence, we assure our countrymen that we will have enough food on our table, during the rest of the year,” said Agriculture Secretary William Dar at a recent meeting of theIATF Task Group on Food Security.
For rice, the country’s main staple, the Department of Agriculture (DA) forecasts a year-end stock good for 75 days. This year, the DA aims to achieve another record harvest of 20.4 million metric tons (MMT) of palay, 1 MMT more than last year’s bumper yield.
The supply situation for other major food commodities—that include vegetables, chicken, and fish—is likewise favorable, Dar said.
He reiterated his instructions to the DA Regional Field Offices to ensure the continuous delivery of surplus farm, livestock, and fishery products to the “NCR plus bubble,” through farmers’ cooperatives and associations and through the Kadiwa outlets. He also reiterated his appeal to the Philippine National Police and local governements to allow the unhampered movement of farmers, fishers, and other essential workers in the food value chain.
The DA chief said despite the easing of inflation, from 4.7 percent in February to 4.5 percent in March 2021, food prices remained a major contributory factor. This is mainly due to the continued supply deficiency in pork, contributing 20.9 percent, according to the National Economic Development Authority.
To manage inflation, he said the DA, in cooperation with agri-fishery industry stakeholders, has been implementing measures to manage the supply and prices of major food products.
“These include the temporary reduction of tariffs, and continued provision of assistance to ASF-affected hog raisers and pork sellers,” Dar said.
The DA and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) agreed to implement effective April 9 a suggested retail price (SRP) on imported pork at P270 per kilogram for kasim; and P350/kg for liempo. The said SRP replaces the ceiling price on pork and chicken, as per Executive Order No. 124, which expired on April 8. The decision was based on consultations with industry stakeholders.
Dar and Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez said there was no SRP for local pork and chicken, allowing free market forces to prevail.