The government will implement pre-shipment inspection on agriculture products in ports of origins ahead of the rollout of the country’s first cold examination facility for agriculture (CEFA) by next year.
Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. of the Department of Agriculture (DA) said pre-shipment inspection could be enforced within three months.
The plan is awaiting approval by the Department of Finance.
Tiu Laurel said pre-shipment inspection will bolster food safety measures and curb smuggling activities detrimental to local farmers and public health. It is expected to improve border controls amid emerging health and economic challenges posed by imported agricultural products.
The DA said the country’s first Q fever case linked to imported goats from the US and persistent agricultural smuggling have highlighted the need to operationalize first border control measures to ensure food safety and prevent the entry of plant pests and economically significant terrestrial and aquatic animal diseases.
Tiu Laurel said the first of five CEFAs that will serve as sanitary and phytosanitary inspection facilities for imported animal, fish, plant and agricultural products will start operations by early next year in Angat, Bulacan. Plans are underway to open four additional CEFAs by September 2025 in Manila, Subic, Davao and General Santos City.
While the CEFAs in Angat and General Santos City will only have DA-funded laboratories, comprehensive facilities are planned for major ports and fish ports including the Manila International Container Terminal, Subic Bay International Corp., Davao International Container Terminal, Manila South Harbor, New Cebu International Container Port, Batangas International Port, Navotas Fish Port, Iloilo International Container Port and Misamis Oriental.
The DA said funding for the CEFA project was originally pegged at P2.3 billion last year but this was reduced to P1.2 billion for the current year following the offer of International Container Terminal Services Inc. to host most of the facilities at local ports it operates.
