DA scraps import permits as smuggling reports rise

MANILA, Philippines – Amid the holiday rush and the expected surge in demand for food products, the Department of Agriculture (DA) has ordered the cancellation of import permits of all agricultural goods, particularly meat, to help curb smuggling.

In a press briefing yesterday, Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol said the agency would recall and cancel all issued permits following reports of rampant smuggling of agricultural products.

“I issued instructions for an immediate cancellation of all import permits of all agricultural products because of persistent reports of recycling and technical smuggling. And this usually happens whenever Christmas season comes because of the great demand for meat and chicken,” he said.

“Many unscrupulous individuals are using the same permits all over again and the only way to check this is the total recall of all permits issued and we can only recall this by cancelling all permits

All product permits that are under DA-attached agencies  such as the Bureau of Plant Industry and Bureau of Animal Industry will be cancelled.

Import permits for rice and corn, on the other hand, are not included as these are not under the umbrella of the DA.

With the cancellation, all importers are now required to appear at the DA-Office of the Secretary to be issued a new set of permits.

“When their (importers) shipments arrive at the ports, the Bureau of Customs will tell them that their permits have been cancelled, then they have to go to DA here in Quezon City and we will issue a new permit in less than 24 hours,” Piñol said.

Moreover, the Agri chief assured that there would be no food supply shortage as the agency would immediately  process the applications to ensure the timely release of products into various markets.

“The cancellation will be immediately effective but the issuance of new permits will also be done immediately so there will be no disruption of economic activities,” Piñol said.

While the DA has yet to quantify the aggregate value that might be affected due its directive, Piñol is confident this would have no adverse impact on the country’s economy.

“We are not stopping any legal importation and there is no effort to stop such. There is no attempt to stop anything that’s legal,” he said.

“We are not stopping the entry of any shipment because we are just making sure that all permits to be used in the entry of these are valid and not recycled. It’s just a matter of checking,” Piñol added.

Piñol likewise debunked insinuations that the agency was pressuring importers to give money.

“We are not doing this to extort money. There’s no corruption in this department, I can assure you that and if ever there will be (people) involved in corruption in this department, I will kick them out,” he said.

Meanwhile, industry group Samahang Industriya sa Agrikultura (Sinag) welcomed the DA’s move as it noted that smuggling continued to flourish despite the enactment of laws that aim to combat smuggling of agri products.

“We are just hoping that the re-issuance of new import permits would not be a new source of corruption for some people,” Sinag chairman Rosendo So said.

Data showed that the value of agricultural goods smuggled into the Philippines has jumped to nearly P200 billion under the Aquino administration mainly due to the onslaught of smugglers who are thriving on cheap imports from neighbouring countries.

This is more than double the P94 billion worth of agricultural commodities that flooded the local market during the previous administration.

“We will be very careful. I don’t want Filipino farmers to be placed at the losing end. If they have done this in the past, they cannot do this to me nor to the administration,” Piñol said.

Smuggled milled rice represented half of the value of agricultural products illegally brought into the country or about P94 billion.

The value of smuggled pork and sugar, on the other hand, amounted to P40 billion and P25 billion, respectively.

Sinag, the umbrella group of farmers, agribusiness operators and party-list groups, placed the foregone revenue at around P60 billion to P80 billion.

Agricultural commodities are supposed to be protected and levied a higher tariff of up to 40 percent.

According to Sinag, smuggling also exposes the country to unsafe and high risk agriculture and food products as smuggled goods do not pass quarantine and food safety inspection.