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Friday, November 06, 2009 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
Economy
Gov’t hard-pressed to ensure enough meat for the holidays
LUZON FACES increasing prospects of a meat shortage this Christmas, as the government falls short of target hog and poultry importations and Central Mindanao, a key producer of hog meat, not having enough for the country’s northern regions.
A MEAT VENDOR in a wet market in Metro Manila talks to her supplier by phone. -- JONATHAN L. CELLONAThe government expects to have a total of 7,000 metric tons (MT) of imported pork in stock by the first week of December and 8,000 MT of poultry meat up to Christmas week, an Agriculture official said yesterday.
"In our latest report, pork in transit is about 5,000 MT…it will arrive in the first week of December," Agriculture Assistant Secretary Salvador S. Salacup told reporters yesterday.
So far, about 2,000 MT of pork imports have already arrived in the country, he added.
However, the total is lower than the Agriculture department’s estimated 20,000 MT supply shortfall for pork, caused by diseases that have hit the industry from the past two years and damage from the two storms that struck Luzon hard in September to October.
The situation for chicken is better, with 3,000 MT of imports now "in transit," Mr. Salacup said.
"I think that the 8,000 MT of chicken will be available [before the holidays]. I still look at price level of P130/kg," he said.
The government approved last month additional 5,000 MT poultry meat imports in a bid to plug a supply gap of the same volume.
However, a storm last week affected poultry production, prompting the private sector to ask for another 3,000 MT of poultry imports. Specifically, typhoon Santi (international codename: Mirinae) hit the poultry-producing provinces in Region IV-A (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Quezon and Rizal), Mr. Salacup said.
"We did some rounds yesterday. [Poultry traders] are contemplating now for another 3,000 MT [poultry imports]," he said, adding that there is already a recommendation to Agriculture Secretary Arthur C. Yap to approve the 3,000 MT special imports.
Under the special imports, poultry importers will not have to pay extra tariffs for imports with landed price of less than P94/kg, deemed to subject local producers to too much competition.
Not enough time
One meat industry official warned "the government is asking us to import [additional 3,000 MT]; but for imports to have an impact in the market, you will want it to arrive in the first half of December."
The source said that if they will order the 3,000 MT now, it will arrive in January.
Pork meat is now sold in Metro Manila wet markets at P160-P170/kg, while chicken is sold at P125-P130/kg, data from the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics show.
To add to Luzon’s supply pressures, the leader of a swine producers group in Central Mindanao admitted yesterday that his sector will find it hard to supply pork products to Luzon.
Central Mindanao, also known as Region XII or Soccsksargen, is composed of South Cotabato, Cotabato, Sultan Kuradrat, Sarangani and General Santos City.
This region accounts for almost a tenth of Philippine commercial hog production, data from the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics show.
"The demand of Luzon for pork cannot easily be met as far as we are concerned," said Emilio V. Escobillo, Jr., president of the South Cotabato Swine Producers Association.
Hog production in the region has not expanded enough to meet the sudden tightening of pork meat supply in Luzon in the wake of storms "Ondoy" (Ketsana) and "Pepeng" (Parma).
Mr. Escobillo noted that the pork shortage now facing Luzon was partly caused by the slaughter of hogs in Luzon farms last year due to the Ebola Reston outbreak.
"Consumers should brace for higher pork prices in the next few weeks going into the [Yuletide] holidays," he noted.
This developed as retail prices of pork meat in this city, the capital of Central Mindanao, increased starting this week by a range of P10-P15/kg in the wet markets.
Farmgate prices of live pigs from farms in South Cotabato that are shipped through the port of General Santos City now range from P93-P94/kg, against P110-P114/kg in Metro Manila, Mr. Escobillo noted.
Mr. Escobillo projected that farmgate price of live hogs in General Santos and neighboring areas would soon breach P100/kg, due to tightening of supplies.
Tight supply of hogs in Central Mindanao markets became evident lately after backyard buyers bought live pigs at P75/kg, from P72/kg in previous weeks.
As a result, retail prices of pork meat in wet markets rose P10-P15/kg from P110-P120/kg.
Mr. Escobillo said he doubted that the planned importation of pork meat would address the situation, saying it will be expensive to buy from abroad.
Early this week, Albert Lim, Jr., president of the National Federation of Hog Farmers, Inc., said that getting pork supplies from Mindanao will not be that cheap. Mr. Lim noted that shipping companies slap a P15/kg fee on pork from Mindanao to Manila. -- Neil Jerome C. Morales in Manila and Romer S. Sarmiento in Koronadal City
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