Philippines to import 60K metric tons of fish for Q1 2022 — DA

Agriculture Secretary William Dar on Tuesday announced that he had approved the importation of 60,000 metric tons (MT) of fish for the first quarter of 2022 to augment local production amid a projected deficiency.

“I just signed yesterday a certificate for the need to import for this first quarter, the amount of 60,000 MT of small pelagic fishes to be imported for this first quarter of the year,” Dar said at the Laging Handa briefing.

The Agriculture chief said he approved the importation of small pelagic fishes—such as round scad or galunggong—due to the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources’ (BFAR) projection of a potential supply deficiency of 119,000 MT due to the closed fishing season.

Dar added that Typhoon Odette severely affected the fishing sector and “we cannot say [whether the] fishing sector will be normal.”

He also stated that the importation would help address the high prices of fish in public wet markets.

Meanwhile, Dar said that the country’s rice inventory was sufficient as of end-2021 and would be good for 115 days.

Dar said 2021 rice production is expected to surpass the record-high 19.4 million metric tons harvested in 2020.

“We are seeing a breach of 20 million metric tons. This will now be a new record harvest in rice production in the country,” he said.

The DA chief also said poultry supply is “more than sufficient” and the supplies of locally produced and imported frozen pork are “more than enough inventory this quarter.” — VBL, GMA News