DA eyes floor price for onions

MANILA, Philippines — A ranking official of the Department of Agriculture (DA) yesterday said the DA will set a floor price for onions as the farmgate price of the bulbs reached as low as P40 per kilo.

In a radio interview, Agriculture Assistant Secretary and spokesman Kristine Evangelista said that the imposition of a floor price has been discussed with the farmers’ group Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura, to prevent the experience of farmers where the farmgate price of onions went down to as low as P10 per kilo.

“Based on the report we are receiving, the farmgate price of onions is at P50 (per kilo), there is also P40 (per kilo). What we are preventing is that the farmgate price will reach P10 per kilo. We want to protect the farmgate price so we are eyeing the implementation of floor price,” Evangelista said.

Evangelista added that with the low farmgate price of the bulbs, the price at the markets should only range between P80 and P100 per kilo.

Based on monitoring of the DA in the Metro Manila markets, onions are still being sold as high as P150 per kilo.

“It should be at least priced at P80 to P100. We are working on it, as based on our monitoring the prevailing price is still P120 (per kilo),” Evangelista noted.

Evangelista said there is enough supply of onions with the peak harvest season.

“The challenge is during the lean months, so we need to ensure that our onion farmers will have access to cold storage facilities. Our Field Inspectorate is tasked to make sure that our farmers will be the priority,” she said.

The retail price of onions reached as high as P720 per kilo in December 2022 amid the shortage in supply.

On the other hand, Evangelista said the government needs to import more garlic to ensure enough supply in the country.

Data from the Bureau of Plant Industry showed that the country’s local garlic production in 2022 only reached 45,656 metric tons (MT) compared to 93,951 MT of imported garlic.

“In terms of garlic, we need to boost the local production as we are lagging behind in terms of garlic, causing us to be dependent on importation, but we are encouraging more farmers to plant,” Evangelista said.

“We need the right planting materials. Based on the preference of our consumers, they buy the imported. We need to influence them to buy native garlic. There is a need to bring down the cost of production as if the native garlic is high, consumers will buy the cheaper (imported garlic),” she said.

Imported garlic ranged between P80 and P140 per kilo compared to native garlic which sold as high as P400 per kilo.

Farmers’ group Philippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food Inc. president Danilo Fausto had warned of another crisis, this time on the garlic supply, if the DA fails to address the dwindling local production.

Fausto noted that the country imports 93 percent of its garlic requirements.

He said the country needs at least 100,000 MT to 110,000 MT to meet the demand.