EDITORIAL – Focus on food security

It’s not just the prices of rice and bread that are going up. Expect prices of meat including corned beef to soar as well in the coming months. The warning was issued by the Cold Chain Association of the Philippines or CCAP, which said prices of the country’s meat imports were also increasing.

Who knew the Philippines imported carabao meat for corned beef? Former President Joseph Estrada must have known something when he famously sponsored a bill, later enacted into law, promoting the propagation of the water buffalo when he was a senator. Filipinos should have taken the law seriously, so the country would not have to depend on countries such as India for carabeef.

But the country has been taking food security for granted. There has been no serious effort to develop a local cattle industry; the bulk of the country’s beef and dairy requirements are imported. Most Filipinos know that the carabao produces excellent milk, which can be processed into top-quality ice cream, cheeses and other dairy products. But Estrada’s initiative has not taken off, and the country does not have enough water buffaloes even for harnessing as beasts of burden.

Apart from beef, the country also imports pork and chicken, which are now in short supply in the world market. Soaring fuel prices and transportation rates, high power costs that have made cold storage more expensive, and the depreciation of the peso have also added to food costs. The CCAP warned that as in the case of rice, even if the country has the money for food imports, there are few sellers. The country also needs about P6 billion in investments in cold chain-supply link infrastructure and technology for food storage and proper delivery.

One positive thing that should come out of this crisis is a new focus on achieving food security. This isn’t going to happen overnight, and food prices are expected to keep rising in the coming months. But those who ignore the problem and fail to act will pay a steep price.