August 10, 2009

Corn farmers in the Philippines are blaming the government for "bad policy governance" that caused domestic and international prices of Philippine-grown corn to drop.

 

According to the Philippine Maize Federation (Philmaize), local corn prices are priced at US$135 per tonne while corn prices in the international market are already averaging US$300 per tonne.

 

Philmaize president Roger Navarro said that corn farmers in Region II are getting as low as P6.50 (US$0.13) per kilogramme (kg) for their produce.

 

In Bulacan - a major corn growing province - the buying price is slightly better at P8.50 per kg, while in Mindanao the buying price is at around P9 per kg.

 

A survey of the farmgate price of corn by the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics (BAS) for July this year showed that as of the fourth week of July, the farmgate price is down to P9.79 per kg, 6.58 percent lower compared to last year's farmgate price of P10.48 per kg.

 

Navarro said production cost per kilo of corn farmers, stands at P10/kg.

 

As such, a buying price of below P10 per kg, means corn farmers are already losing.

 

Navarro likewise criticized the National Food Authority (NFA) for not making good on its assurance of buying up to 300,000 metric tonnes of corn at the support price of P13/kg.

 

Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap had previously announced the grant of the support price upon the instruction of President Arroyo.

 

The announced support price, however, would only be for 20 percent of the projected harvest.

 

For the first crop this year, Navarro said, the corn harvest is forecast between 1.5 million tonnes to as high as three million tonnes.

 

Navarro said the NFA declared it has ran out of funds for further corn procurement and is, thus, temporarily suspending corn support price buying.

 

Navarro blamed the current low prices of corn to "bad policy" specifically citing the "damaging impact of Executive Order 675 as a very much ill-advised government policy."

 

The government has decided to lift the tariff for feed wheat to zero early this year.

 

The inclusion of feed wheat in EO 675 was granted "to prevent technical smuggling" Navarro said.

 

However, the issuance of EO 675 is "a great manifestation of ignorance of taxation laws" and "the laxity and inconsistency of policy from the Department of Agriculture which made the ultimate recommendation without even consulting the affected corn sector."

 

Philmaize argued that "as always, bad policy will make its impact at a later time, and now the time has come for mourning."

 

While the peak of harvest will be between August to September this year,  Navarro said "farmers are already looking for ways to recoup their investments, cope and remedy the damage caused by the bad policy governance that resulted to the issuance of EO 675."