Philippines cuts rice tariffs to ensure food security and fight inflation Sorry, but your browser needs Javascript to use this site. If you re not sure how to activate it, please refer to this site: https://www.enable-javascript.com/
Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte speaks at Villamor Air Base in February. | REUTERS
Reuters May 16, 2021
Manila – Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte reduced the tariff for imported rice on Saturday to ensure food security and protect consumers in the world’s biggest importer of the grain.
The Southeast Asian nation, which is battling elevated inflation, took into consideration the increase in global rice prices and uncertainties in local rice supply, the president’s office said in a statement.
Published May 15, 2021, 7:24 PM
The country’s tariff rates on imported rice and pork products will be adjusted for a year in a bid to boost food supply and keep prices affordable, Malacañang announced Saturday.
President Rodrigo Duterte skims through a document as he presides over a meeting with the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Emerging Infectious Diseases core members at the Arcadia Active Lifestyle Center in Matina, Davao City on May 10, 2021. (Malacañang)
President Duterte has issued Executive Order No. 135 authorizing the temporary reduction of the Most Favored Nation (MFN) tariff rates on rice imports to 35 percent.
Executive Order No. 134, on the other hand, seeks to slightly raise the tariff rates on pork imports earlier reduced by the President.
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U.S. Meat Export Federation staff | May 12, 2021
For many months, all eyes in the global pork industry have been focused on China s effort to contain the spread of African swine fever (ASF) and rebuild its swine herd to pre-ASF levels. This is understandable, given that China produces and consumes about half the world s pork and has become the dominant export destination for most of the world s pork-exporting countries. In its most recent semi-annual report on China’s livestock situation, the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service in Beijing forecast China’s 2021 pork production to increase by 14% year-over-year to 47 million metric tons (mt). But the pace of China s herd recovery has been very difficult to gauge due to ASF outbreaks periodically resurfacing in various parts of the country.
wissanu01/iStock/Thinkstock.
Lauren Servick, Minnesota Pork Producers Association | May 12, 2021
Diversifying market opportunities, including exports, remains a priority for Minnesota hog farmers and the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC). As an industry annually exporting more than one-quarter of production, establishing fair trade agreements will create a more resilient demand portfolio for pork.
While NPPC is focused on numerous markets, Vietnam represents one of our best near-term export opportunities. Vietnam is a major pork-consuming nation dealing with African swine fever (ASF) outbreaks in its domestic herd. The country is in need of affordable, reliable pork, yet U.S. pork producers are hamstrung by unwarranted tariff and non-tariff barriers, allowing global competitors to take advantage of the supply shortfall.