July 6, 2006

Philippines rejects feed industry's bid to import cheaper corn

The Philippine Department of Agriculture has rejected a request by local feedmillers to bring in 120,000 tonnes of corn imports at preferential tariff rates, with the harvest starting this month.

"The approaching peak harvest for corn does not justify an additional minimum access volume, or MAV, for corn," Agriculture Undersecretary Segfredo Serrano told reporters.

Serrano said farmers would start harvesting the main crop from this month until August, which would substantially increase the country's supply of corn.

The Philippine Association of Feedmillers specifically asked the agriculture department in May to allow them to import 120,000 tonnes of corn under the MAV Plus mechanism, which would allow them to pay a lower duty of 35 percent instead of 50 percent.

The MAV is the smallest amount of a commodity that the Philippines has committed to bring in at preferential tariff rates under its WTO obligations.

In the case of corn, the MAV tariff was set at 35 percent while out-quota imports are given a tariff duty of 50 percent.

Feedmillers, however, have already exhausted the MAV volume set for the year, which was pegged at 216,000 tonnes, leading to their request for an additional MAV allocation.