Marcos urged to prioritize food security amid global challenges

The Philippine Rural Reconstruction Movement (PRRM) on Thursday urged President-elect Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. to prioritize food security in the country amid global challenges.

“We hope the President prioritizes our local food security, our farmers, and our fishermen by not only providing support and aid to the industry but also by strengthening our Navy, Maritime Police, and Coast Guard so we can protect what is ours,” PRRM president Edicio dela Torre said in a statement.

The PRRM, a non-government organization geared towards food security and self-sufficiency for the country, expressed hope that the incoming Marcos administration will give importance in achieving food security for Filipinos despite a “weak global environment."

Dela Torre said the world faced increasing challenges that hindered economies in achieving food security, noting that the Philippines is “no exception."

“Among these challenges include worsening climate change, rapid population growth, elevated food costs, and other global tensions that impact trade and commodity prices,” he said.

He also cited the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, saying that this “proved the country’s vulnerability to shocks."

He also asked the incoming administration to prioritize local producers in providing necessary support to empower them to be locally and globally competitive.

“We want the President to prioritize our local producers. China makes up 86% of our seafood and 22% of fish imports. Its top export is galunggong which now sells at P250 to P350 a kilo. Our main fish staple is now a protein that is more expensive than chicken and is almost equal to pork,” Dela Torre added.

He also called to prioritize securing local fishing grounds to empower Filipino fishermen to fish in the country’s maritime waters.

“Importation has been the stop gap solution but this is not the long term solution. There are several ways to close the fishing gaps and importation is not one of them,” Dela Torre said.

“We have to prioritize securing our local fishing grounds and the exclusive economic zone and empower our fishermen to fish in our own waters,” he said.

During the recent meeting with German Ambassador Anke Reiffenstuel, Marcos committed to protect human rights, safeguarding international rules based order, and the rule of law.

Both countries also discussed global food security which has been greatly affected by the Russia and Ukraine war.

Marcos earlier said he would fix the value chain to lower the price of rice.

The value chain is the series of stages involved in producing a product or service that is sold to consumers, with each state adding to the value of the product or service.

Dela Torre said the food value chain is not singular and that there is a need to deal primarily with national interests in terms of food sovereignty and with different countries and stakeholders to provide key markets and inputs.

“Definitely we must take a more plural approach, a multilateral one because we have to take into account all the stakeholders involved,” he said.—Richa Noriega/AOL, GMA News