THE Tariff Commission will hold a public hearing on the proposed retention of the current Most Favored Nation (MFN) tariff rates on mechanically deboned or separated meat (MDM) of chicken and turkey next week.
The hearing on September 19, will be on MDM of chicken and frozen meat and edible offal of turkey not cut in pieces.
Also included are MDM of turkey as well as meat cuts and edible offal of turkeys, frozen, other than livers or MDM.
“The tariff rates on subject articles are being implemented in accordance with Executive Order 23, s. 2017. EO 23 provides that the current tariff rates on subjected articles are applicable until June 30, 2020, or until such time that a law amending certain provisions relating to rice tariffication in Republic Act 8178 is enacted, whichever comes first,” Tariff Commission Chairman Marilou P. Mendoza said in the Notice of Public Hearing released on Tuesday.
The MDM of chicken and frozen meat has an MFN rate of 5 percent between January 2018 to June 30, 2020. But starting July 1, 2020, the tariff rate for these products will revert to 40 percent.
The MFN rate for edible offal of turkey not cut in pieces for both in-quota and out-quota under EO 23 is 20 percent. However, by July 1, 2020, the tariff rates will be at 30 percent for in-quota and 35 percent for out-quota.
The MFN rate for MDM of turkey is at 5 percent under EO 23 but by July 1, 2020, the rates for in-quota will be 30 percent and out-quota, 40 percent.
The rates for meat cuts and edible offal of turkeys, frozen, other than livers or MDM, is at 20 percent under EO 23. But by July 1, 2020, the in-quota rates will be 30 percent and out-quota rate will be 40 percent.
Earlier, the Philippine Association of Meat Processors Inc. (Pampi) cautioned the government against reverting the tariff on MDM to 40 percent as this would cause prices of processed meat products to spike.
Pampi argued that prices of canned meat products and hot dogs would increase by as much as 17 percent once the current tariff on MDM of 5 percent reverts to its 2012 level.
MDM is a widely utilized raw material in production of processed meat products, such as hot dogs and meat loaf.
Pampi said the meat processing industry’s import of MDM last year reached 189.1 million kilograms, 12.09 percent higher than the 168.7 million kg recorded volume in 2016.