Several groups have appealed to the Department of Agriculture (DA) to implement immediate aid in various sectors to ensure food security in the country.
Among the sectors seeking assistance are the poultry, seaweeds, fisheries, salt, dairy, bamboo and corn.
Danilo Fausto, Philippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food Inc. (PCAFI) president, in an aide memoire sent to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. as concurrent secretary of the DA, cited several concerns and request for action to assist the development of some sectors of the local agriculture which were either overlooked or not given priority by government.
Fausto said in the document since mechanically deboned meat is not locally produced, its importation is necessary, but government must be stricter in its entry as deboned chicken is sometimes passed on as chicken fillet or chicken meat directly competing with local chicken production, which is 97 percent sufficient to supply local demand.
Fausto said this problem is pulling down farm gate prices of chicken below break-even cost.
For the seaweeds industry, PCAFI requested for a budgetary hike and reversion of the industry’s annual budget to about P250 million to boost domestic production and take advantage of the huge potential in the local and global markets.
According to Fausto, the government must also give focus on the scheduled review of carrageenan next year as acceptable ingredient for US organic products, since losing the American and European markets will translate to a loss of around $115 million worth of exports.
PCAFI also noted the need to augment the inventory of canned sardine manufacturers before the closed season starting next month until February next year.
Fausto said the government should help municipal fishers to supply the additional requirements and provide logistics to municipal fishermen with bigger boat capacity and set up ice plants.
For the salt industry, PCAFI wants the President to endorse House Bill No. 1976 or the Philippine Salt Industry Development Act as urgent, while also providing an initial P300 million or P100 million budget for 2023 for Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao to jumpstart the development of the salt industry.
Meanwhile, Fausto said an additional P300 million budget must be provided for the National Dairy Authority and the Philippine Carabao Center next year to fund acomprehensive breeding program and hire technical personnel toincrease the local herd buildup in exchange for a more expensive importationof dairy animals.
As for the bamboo industry, PCAFI said P100 million must be allotted for every region annually to provide planting materials, develop bamboo plantations and help the livelihood of rural farmers and further increase local production worth $30 million a year.
For the Philippine Maize Federation Inc. (Phil Maize), the government is urged to provide a clear policy signal of support for local farmers over international trade, while also making farm storage infrastructure apart of the government program to have a clear target and funding sources.
Roger Navarro, PhilMaize president, said among others, farmer support by way of subsidy for inputs, seeds, fertilizers, fuel for farming and market guarantees at fair buying prices or support price must also be done.
Navarro added as food security is paramount to fertilizer security, the Philippines must aspire to produce in industrial scale inorganic or organic base fertilizer using modern techniques, utilizing local resources and microbes.
