Farmers urged to raise the quality of their tobacco crops

VIGAN CITY– Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap challenged tobacco farmers to raise the quality of their crops to preempt further importations of tobacco products by big tobacco firms.

Yap hurled the challenged during the 2005 Tobacco Summit held at Baluarte Hills here last Wednesday.

The challenge was in response to a demand by Philippine Association of Tobacco-Based Cooperatives (PATCO) president Carlos Cachola who said leaf importation is hurting local farmers.

Ilocos Sur Governor Luis "Chavit" Singson welcomed the summit participants that included top tobacco traders, manufacturers, farmers and local officials of Region I.

He narrated how he was able to have his pet legislation R.A. 7171 passed through the congressional wringer during his one-term stint as a congressman in 1987.

The measure which was signed into law by former President Corazon Aquino returns 15 percent of the tobacco excise tax collections by the National Government to the Virginia tobacco producing provinces as their revenue share.

He said that the revenue shares of the various local government units benefiting from R.A. 7171 have now helped develop their communities in terms of farm to market roads, bridges and other infrastructure and livelihood activities.

Administrator Carlitos Encarnacion of the National Tobacco Administration (NTA), reported to Yap that this year’s tobacco crop is of high quality and that the farmers are earning much more than expected for their yields.

He said that NTA together with PATDA had been campaigning for high quality production and provided appropriate farming technologies for the farmers.

One of their strategies, that paid off, he said, is for the farmers to plant early and another is the banning of tobacco farming on salty soil.

Yap assured the farmers that he would be looking into their demand for restriction on leaf importation which PATCO had earlier aired to him in a formal petition.

His only reservation according to him is that the government cannot totally ban importation because the country is a GATT-signatory.

He said that other GATT-member countries may retaliate. Just the same he assuaged the farmers saying, "We hear you loud and clear."

GATT or General Agreement on Tariff and Trade had opened the doors to trade liberalization among member-countries.

The summit drew the participation of top leaders of the tobacco buying and cigarette manufacturing industries. They were led by Winston Uy, president of the Philippines Aromatic Tobacco Dealers Association (PATDA), Rodolfo Salanga, president of Philippine Tobacco Institute, Gen. Antonio Abaya, president of Fortune Tobacco Corporation, Frank Tan, also of Fortune Tobacco and lawyer Mabel Mamba and Elmer Mesina of Philip Morris Philippines, Inc. (Teddy Molina)