Tugon Kabuhayan and fisheries stakeholders have asked Congress to investigate in aid of legislation on the Department of Agriculture (DA) for approving the importation of 60,000 metric tons (MT) of small pelagic fish for the quarter despite the sector’s strong opposition.
In an online briefing yesterday, the groups, represented by officers of the National Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Management Council (NFARMC), said there is no need for DA to issue another Certificate of Necessity to Import (CNI) since supply is sufficient due to the low utilization of the previous CNI.
CNI is the document granted to importers of good standing and compliant with food safety guidelines to participate in the importation of agricultural goods. The last time DA issued a CNI for small pelagic fish was for the last quarter of 2021 also for 60,000 MT.
Citing NFARMC’s Resolution No. 3 series of 2022, the groups said under the previous CNI, 12,023 MT of fish are in transit, 22,613 MT are in cold storage including the remaining 11,015 MT, for a total volume on-stock equivalent to 45,651 MT as of January 13.
NFARMC members have assured DA the country will have enough supply of fish before the lifting of closed seasons in Visayan Sea, Northern Palawan, and Basilan-Sulu-Zamboanga.
Norbert Chingcuanco of Feedmix Specialist II Inc. and NFARMC representative, said the data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) which has become DA’s main basis are only forecasts.
Peter Paul Santos,vice president for National Capital Region of the Alliance of Philippines Fishing Federation Inc., said municipal fisherfolk and the aquaculture sector will suffer if there is an oversupply.
“We have 120,000 direct employees, 250,000 indirect. If you include their families, this means millions of people are affected. We’re asking government to recall and set aside this CNI,” Santos said.
Dennis Calvan, representative of Pangingisda Natin Gawing Tama Network, is imploring the Congress and the Senate to conduct a hearing for the DA to officially justify the latest CNI for fish.
“When there are natural disasters and closed seasons, importation shouldn’t be our first recourse when anticipating deficiency in fish supply. There should be research. There should be a study on how to mitigate those disasters without resorting to importation. Our fishermen, especially our municipal fishermen, are the ones who are most affected by this. We need to protect them, as they are the most marginalized,” Calvan said. – Jed Macapagal
