‘A piece of meat’
The young man stumbled tipsily into the massage parlor known for offering or condoning “extras” negotiated between clients and their masseuses. And while the standard massage was being delivered the young man wasted no time negotiating for sexual services. It did not take long for the woman to realize that the “client” was a haggler who was more interested in getting the cheapest price for sex than anything else. After an hour of the deal making, the woman was so exasperated and insulted she simply said: “Sir, Today, You, have succeeded in making me feel like a piece of meat at the public market .”
We have done worse to others and not just a “sex worker.” Many exasperated street vendors point out how Filipinos regularly “tawad” vendors to death or haggle them down for daily consumables but regularly go to the malls and specialty stores where we pay exorbitant prices and can’t or won’t haggle.
I was once on the receiving end of such a comment and I took it to heart because it was so true.
We think nothing of getting the best price or haggling down someone who can’t even afford to pay for a stall.
When we have foreign guests, we really put on the pressure just to show foreigners our bargaining skills, unmindful of the fact that we haggled down the poorest of the poor and not someone who owned a chain of stores or a branded product outlet.
In case you’re wondering where all of this is coming from; I recently watched a news clip of people complaining about the prices of chicken while farmers were complaining that prices of red onions were slowly crashing because there was an abundant harvest this season.
Unfortunately commercial importers were allowed to import so much that the combination resulted in too much supply and both sides suffered a price drop. Secretary Manny Piñol was quick to point out that the rise in chicken prices was due to a ban on importation of chickens (that are generally subsidized and tax free from the countries of origin). Cheap subsidized and undervalued imports often flood the market and are sold at lower prices, forcing farmers to drop their prices rather than lose everything.
The fact of the matter is that regular local prices are indicative of actual costs to produce chickens and if there is anything wrong with the price it is usually created or caused by middlemen, NOT the farmers. Just to give you an idea: Do you know that a day old chick costs P30 direct from the plant and P32 to P40 retail? Do you know that a week old free range variety or layer chicks costs upwards of P60 to P70? Throw in feed and water for 40 to 70 days, electricity and labor. Last night dressed chicken culled at 38 days was P150 a kilo.
Some people I know raise chickens and pigs because it beats unemployment or the boredom of retirement. Some barely make a profit, they simply benefit from eating what they raise. Others are simply “investing” for the nickel and dime that becomes “baon” of their school kids or grand kids going to free public school or add to pay for electricity. They are at the level where every centavo really counts.
It’s a hard life for both farmers and prostitutes because people simply take advantage of them. Everybody assumes and places the blame on farmers when food prices go up, the government steps in and pushes back or clamps down on prices, but NEVER EVER have we heard government do something about regulating middlemen who jack up the prices and earn more than farmers ever do!
For decades government has turned the prices of agricultural products into a populist political instrument by keeping prices unnaturally low and always at the expense of farmers and producers. Why so? People whine about gas prices but does the government step in? NO. People whine about telecoms but they can’t live without it! If McDonalds and Jollibee raised prices nobody yaks, but here we are whining about food prices in a country where so much rice is wasted at every meal, where kids and adults have started to become obese pigging out on junk food, soda and bottled water that are all over priced compared to a piece of meat!
Secretary Mon Lopez of DTI and Secretary Piñol of the DA need to educate the public on what goes into food and farm products and their costs. Many DTI career officials merely recite memorized lines to fend off criticism or to pass blame instead of teaching Filipinos that producing chickens, vegetables, pork etc. costs a lot of money, takes time and requires a lot of work and most of what we eat are produced by ordinary farms. Most importantly, the DTI needs a change of view and mindset about farmers. They are indirect clients and partners of the DTI who are engaged in domestic trade. Treat farmers and producers as clients!
What’s ironic is that government is equally as guilty as the middlemen because government earns taxes from imported materials that are used by feed mills, breeding stock imported by hatcheries, corporate taxes, VAT etc. Government and taxes are as hidden as middlemen. The very least they can do is either to do their share in helping and protecting the farmers and producers or simply educate Filipinos that everything comes at a cost. Educate Pinoys to know where their food comes from, at what cost and difficulty.
* * * Respect our food and our farmers. They are worth more than a piece of meat! * * * Email: utalk2ctalk@gmail.com H