Marcos eyes lower tariffs on imported agri goods

MANILA, Philippines – President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has ordered the Department of Agriculture and the Tariff Commission to look into lowering tariffs of imported agricultural goods amid disruptions to the global food production.

“Inutusan ko na ang Department of Agriculture at Tariff Commission pababain ang taripa sa mga inaangkat na pagkain upang makatulog sa pagbaba ng presyo para sa ating mga namimili,” Marcos said in a Malacañang presser on Monday, April 13.

(I’ve ordered the Department of Agriculture and the Tariff Commission to [study] lowering the tariffs of imported food to help reduce prices for our consumers.)

To further support imports, Marcos said the government will fast-track the necessary permits. Toll fees in fish ports are removed. According to the President, local supply of rice, corn, vegetables, sugar, fish, meat, and chicken are still enough and no changes in prices are expected until the end of April.

Marcos said lowering tariffs will be done carefully to protect local production.

Earlier, some officials from the agriculture department were not in favor of increasing imports. Agriculture chief Francisco Tiu-Laurel Jr. previously said he does not want to import more or reduce tariffs to protect local production. DA Undersecretary Asis Perez said in a Senate hearing last week that importing was not a good option because other countries will be saving their own food supply.

Agricultural groups said the proposed tariff reduction on imported pork, chicken, and corn “would be a stab of the local agriculture sector and our national economy.”

“To rely on imports at this time will destroy local food supply that will lead to higher food prices and increased food insecurity,” groups said in a letter to Malacañang and concerned agencies.

These are groups of hog farmers, broiler raisers, fertilizer and pesticide firms, fishers, among others. They maintained that years of tariff reduction did not lead to lower prices, and the gap between farm gate and retail prices only increased.

Jayson Cainglet of agricultural group Sinag said Marcos’ directive to the Tariff Commission would be good for them as formal hearings would need to be conducted before a new tariff policy is put in place.

Cainglet said it would buy them time to “rally the whole agricultural sector and allied industries to oppose all tariff reduction proposal.” – Rappler.com