September 26, 2007

 

Philippines to review chicken import regulations

 

 

Philippine Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap on Tuesday (September 25) sought a review of the regulations on setting pre-approved import volumes for chicken as part of its efforts to safeguard the interests of local poultry growers and ensure stable supply.

 

In a statement, Yap said that by January 2008, the Department of Agriculture (DA) should have completed the review of the rules on the grant of minimum access volume (MAV) to chicken importers to make the procedures more responsive to the demands of the market.

 

The MAV refers to the minimum volume for specific agricultural products that members of the World Trade Organization (WTO) have agreed to allow entry to their respective countries at lower-than-regular tariff rates.

 

In a recent poultry industry gathering, Yap said poultry industry leaders led by Gregorio San Diego of the United Broiler Raisers Association (UBRA) explained that MAV has become some sort of tradable security for some unscrupulous importers, who sell their import-volume permits instead of using this privilege to help the sector augment the supply of chicken during critical periods.

 

The agriculture chief said a more relevant MAV procedure will come out in 2008.

 

Yap said that while both the DA and industry leaders continue to address this concern, there have been several positive developments for the poultry sector, which grossed P53.8 billion (US$1.2 billion) in the first half of 2007 at current prices.

 

Data from the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics (BAS) show that for 2006, the country's self-sufficiency for dressed chicken stands at about 95 percent.

 

This figure represents 643,000 tonnes (MT) of local production, with importation accounting for only about five per cent, or about 33,633 tonnes, he said.

 

Yap noted that per capita consumption of poultry is also on the rise. From 4.3 kilos per head in 1990 and 7.2 kilos per head in 2000, the country's per capita consumption of chicken rose to 7.8 kilos in 2006.

 

For chicken eggs, the per capita consumption was 3.3 kilos or 69 pieces per capita in 2004, which, in 2006, went up to 3.5 kilos or 73 pieces.

 

He noted that on top of the high local demand for eggs, the domestic poultry industry can also tap an even bigger market in Southeast Asia, considering that the Philippines holds the enviable position of being the only bird-flu free country in the region.

 

Thailand, for instance, consumes 148 eggs per capita; Malaysians consume 324 eggs; and Koreans, 365.

 

The DA head said that despite the declaration by the World Health Organization (WHO) of Philippines, Singapore and Brunei as bird flu free, it is only the Philippines that can truly be considered a bird-flu free state because neither Singapore nor Brunei has a poultry sector to protect.

 

To maintain this avian influenza-free status, he said the DA has been investing in disease containment, identification and eradication by establishing the Regional Avian Influenza Diagnostic Laboratory (RAIDL) in Pampanga, which is the country's first diagnostic facility meant to promptly detect the bird flu virus.

 

Moreover, the DA will be opening three more similar diagnostic laboratories this year in Cebu, Cagayan de Oro and Zamboanga.