MANILA, Philippines — International testing, inspection and certification provider SGS has offered to inspect imported agricultural products to the Philippines to help monitor leakages in trade, according to Go Negosyo founder Joey Concepcion.
In a statement yesterday, Concepcion said he had a meeting with SGS vice president and regional operations manager (Asia) George Bottomley last March 31, when the latter discussed how the SGS system can help monitor leakages in trade and provide data analysis to increase trade revenues and opportunities for the Philippines.
The Geneva-based SGS operates locally as SGS Philippines and has offices and laboratories across the country.
Globally, the company has 97,000 employees in 2,650 offices and laboratories worldwide.
Concepcion said SGS offered to inspect imported agricultural products to the Philippines at no cost to the government.
He explained that the company plans on charging its fees to the exporters of agricultural products to the Philippines.
“SGS’ offer is to inspect all agricultural products coming into the Philippines, and it will now be the exporters who will have to pay to send their agricultural products here,” Concepcion said.
“The issue on agricultural smuggling is real, and I think any effort to help curb it is worth looking into,” he added.
According to Go Negosyo, Bottomley emphasized the importance of ensuring the safety and quality of agricultural products in the country, as well as how SGS can assist farmers and agribusinesses by providing testing and certification services.
He also affirmed the commitment of SGS to promote sustainable agriculture practices through its programs and initiatives.
Concepcion said the proposal of SGS will be referred to the relevant public and private sector bodies, such as the Department of Agriculture and the Private Sector Advisory Council for agriculture.
He emphasized that eradicating smuggling and undervaluation of agricultural goods complements efforts to help strengthen local agriculture.
“It comes just in time as more companies have become interested in joining our KALAP initiative,” Concepcion said, referring to Go Negosyo’s Kapatid Angat Lahat Agri Program.
Just recently, the country’s leading banks and financial institutions met with KALAP and expressed their support for its efforts to ease farmers’ access to credit.
KALAP is an initiative of Go Negosyo to help the country’s small farmers integrate into the value chain of large companies.
Its proponents have begun drafting its roadmap to implement inclusive business models for primary agricultural commodities in the country.