House agri panel hears testimony of pork farmgate crash following EO 116

THE House Committee on Agriculture and Food heard testimony from farmers’ and food-industry groups questioning the basis of Executive Order (EO) 116, which  greatly increased the minimum access volume (MAV) for pork to 204,210 metric tons (MT) from 54,210 MT previously.

The EO, which raised the volume of foreign pork admitted into the country under favorable tariff conditions, had been billed as an inflation-containment measure. However, the committee’s resource persons called it detrimental to the interests of domestic pork producers.

Rosendo O. So, President of the Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura, said the EO put domestic pork producers at a disadvantage by depressing the farmgate price earned by hog raisers. He noted that the farmgate price fell 20.7% year on year in May to P189.58 per kilo.

“We should not be talking about (a MAV expansion) this year and should just revoke (the EO),” Mr. So said, noting that the domestic supply of pork has started to improve after the African Swine Fever (ASF) outbreak decimated the domestic hog population after the outbreak was first detected in 2019.

Eric Harina, chairman of ProPork, batted for the restoration of tariff protections for the industry and called for legally binding consultations with domestic producers before adopting any new agricultural trade policy. He said the government needs to focus on farm-to-market supply chain modernization instead of resorting to import liberalization.

“If we want lower meat prices and long-lasting effects, we need to nurture (and) support the industry so supply increases and retail prices stabilize,” Mr. Harina said. — Marron Joshua F. Mendoza