The Department of Trade and Industry is coordinating with the private sector to “reduce the steps in the supply chain, particularly between the farmer and the retailer.”
DTI Undersecretary Ruth Castelo of the DTI-Consumer Protection Group said “this is what we’re finalizing now but Secretary Alfredo Pascual will make the announcement once we’ve ironed out all the details necessary.”
The public and private sectors are finalizing strategies to improve food security (through accessibility and availability) in the country amid inflation spikes.
Castelo could not yet divulge all details of DTI’s initiatives but gave hints that the government and private sector are mulling over setting limits for traders.
“Of course, the DTI needs to help as our contribution to food security. These are agricultural products, but Secretary [Alfredo] Pascual has proposed initiatives to President Marcos, which he approved. However, we cannot disclose the details except that traders (margins) will be limited.”
The National Price Coordinating Council (NPCC), chaired by DTI’s Pascual convened a special meeting two weeks ago to discuss measures to mitigate the effects of the rising prices of onion towards consumers and improve its supply.
Castelo revealed that DTI witnessed through its price monitoring operations the huge mark-ups between the farmgate price or landed cost of onions and the retail price.
Data from Bureau of Customs (BoC), she noted, shows that the landed cost of imported onion is only P14.
Castelo added that based on DTI’s price monitoring operations, retail prices of local red onions in Metro Manila markets are ranging from P180 to as much as P350 per kilo. Prices of the commodity are expected to subside since local farmers have started harvesting, according to her.
In the NPCC’s January 25 meeting chaired by Pascual and attended by representatives of national government agencies including the Department of Agriculture (DA) and National Economic and Development Authority (Neda), the council members forged “interagency” initiatives to address the rising prices of onions.
Urging members of the council, Pascual had said then,
“Given this crucial situation, we are to deliver immediate results to temper the prices of goods and ensure the availability of affordable basic necessities and prime commodities for consumers. We must tap other agencies who can be our allies in this endeavor.”
The DTI, as one of the implementing agencies of the Price Act, has been helping DA monitor prices of some agricultural products.
According to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the country’s headline inflation increased to 8.1 percent in December 2022 from 8 percent in November 2022.
PSA said the higher inflation in December 2022 compared to November 2022 was “primarily” brought about by the faster year-on-year growth rate in the index of food and non-alcoholic beverages of 10.2 percent from 10 percent in November 2022.
Food inflation at the national level rose further to 10.6 percent in December 2022 from 10.3 percent in November 2022.