MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Agriculture and Bureau of Customs seized smuggled sugar on Thursday as part of the government’s efforts to plug an ongoing shortage of goods fueling painfully high inflation.
In a statement on Tuesday, the DA said that 58 container vans in Subic carried 30,160 bags of refined sugar, totalling 1.51 million kilograms. The DA computed that with the prevailing price of sugar at P100 per kg, the shipment was valued at P150.8 million.
Related Stories
The shipment was consigned by JB8 Consumer Goods Trading.
The operation was mounted alongside Customs, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, Philippine Coast Guard, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, and the Bureau of Animal Industry.
The agriculture department indicated that they will file criminal cases against the consignee for misstating and misclassifying the shipment. The consignee violated the Food Safety Act of 2013 and Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act of 2016.
The DA is currently helmed by President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. who has yet to name a replacement despite announcing intentions months back. — Ramon Royandoyan