DESPITE receiving flak for implementing stringent quarantine rules, Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol said the government will continue to strengthen efforts to prevent the entry of meat products contaminated with the dreaded African swine fever (ASF).
Piñol told reporters on Monday that he will insist on an import moratorium on pork and pork products from countries with confirmed ASF outbreaks, as well as those nations that are contiguous with affected countries.
“We don’t need an order from the President [to impose an import ban]. It’s at the department level. But I just have to inform him of course so that he will not be caught off-guard,” Piñol said.
“If the Philippines is hit by ASF because our rules are too
soft, considerate, imagine the devastation this will cause. It can cause
economic
dislocation because we will import pork at a very high price,” he added.
The agriculture chief also said he is not content with merely deploying sniff dogs at airports as these animals “can make mistakes.” Piñol said he wants to install x-ray machines in all major gateways of the country.
He said these x-ray machines will be able to ensure that all the pork and meat products entering the Philippines are ASF-free.
Piñol added that the government is willing to study proposals to impose higher penalties for violators. However, he said, this may take longer given that the existing penalties are included in the Food Safety Act, which requires legislation to amend.
Fears of high prices eased
The agriculture chief also allayed fears that the stringent quarantine rules would result in higher prices of meat products. He said there are many other sources of pork and products that can meet the requirements of the Philippines.
Piñol said the Department of Agriculture (DA) has identified countries that remain ASF-free where meat importers can source pork and pork products. He said these countries have been able to keep ASF out because of their strict quarantine rules.
Remaining ASF-free, he said, is the only way to ensure that the Philippines will be able to achieve its goal of exporting pork products.
Citing studies, the DA chief said countries that have been infected by ASF could “suffer for decades.” This, he said, provides the Philippines a window of opportunity for the local hog sector to export pork.
“We are not rejoicing that our neighbors are suffering because of ASF. But that’s life. We will take advantage of this opportunity and we will assume the role of a major producer of pork and pork products in this region,” Piñol said.
Piñol earlier said he will propose to President Duterte a three-month import moratorium on pork and pork products from countries that are at high risk for African swine fever. This means that these countries have not reported any ASF outbreak, but are at risk because they are contiguous with infected territories.
He said the proposal of the DA is a preventive measure aimed at ensuring stable food prices, as a decimated domestic hog population could accelerate inflation.
The proposed import ban has the backing of economic managers led by Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III, he added.
Piñol said economic managers vowed to yield to the DA on issues involving quarantine measures against animal diseases, such as ASF, that could cripple industries.
Image credits: Nonie Reyes