The House of Representatives Quinta Committee, also called the “Murang Pagkain Supercommittee,” chaired by Albay Rep. Joey Salceda, on Wednesday resumed its probe into the smuggling and price manipulation of goods such as rice and meat imports.
AGAP Party-list Rep. Nicanor Briones expressed concerns about importers allegedly misdeclaring pork as other products to evade high tariffs.
Briones explained that pork cuts are subject to a 25% tariff, while fat, meat skin, and offals are taxed at only 5%.
“Dine-declare na offals pero ang totoong dumadating may possibility na tunay na pork cuts or tunay na karne just to evade paying right tariffs,” he said.
Department of Agriculture (DA) assistant secretary Constante Palabrica assured that they are committed to investigating the issue. He explained that African Swine Fever (ASF) remains a major challenge for the swine industry, having reduced pig production by half since 2019.
Palabrica also mentioned that the DA has secured 500,000 doses of the ASF vaccine, which have been distributed to farmers to help address the ongoing issue.
Bureau of Customs assistant commissioner Vincent Philip Maronilla discussed the agency’s use of a system to inspect shipments.
Co-chairperson Iloilo Rep. Ferjenel Biron proposed reinstating pre-shipment inspections and noted that post-shipment inspections are more difficult to carry out.
“Kasi it’s very challenging for us to do a post-shipment inspection. It may incur additional cost on the part of the importer but that will ensure biosecurity and you prevent revenue loss,” Biron stated.
