Philippine President Marcos meets over high prices of imported onions

Published Feb 3, 2023

Tridge summary

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. is set to convene a stakeholder meeting after the discovery of imported onions being sold at high prices, up to ₱200 (€3.37) per kilo. The meeting will involve importers, traders, retailers, and farmers, following the arrival of the first batch of over 21,000 tons of imported onions aimed at addressing the onion shortage and price hike in the country. Concurrently, Senator J.V. Ejercito has proposed Senate Bill 1688 to broaden the anti-smuggling of agricultural products law and impose severe penalties on hoarders, profiteers, and cartels involved in carrots, garlic, onions, cruciferous vegetables, sugar, corn, pork, poultry, and fish, once these products reach a minimum value of $16,900, categorizing such activities as economic sabotage.

Disclaimer:The above summary was generated by Tridge's proprietary AI model for informational purposes.

Original content

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has ordered a stakeholder meeting this week after discovering that imported onions are sold for up to ₱200 (€3.37) per kilo. According to Cheloy Garafil, secretary of the Presidential Communications Office, Marcos will chair the meeting on the reported high prices as imported onions begin to enter the country. "The president has ordered a stakeholder meeting on Monday with importers, traders, retailers and farmers to discuss the price since the Ministry of Agriculture's price monitoring team saw imported onions being sold for ₱180-200 per kg," said Garafil yesterday. The first batch of the more than 21,000 tons of imported onions has arrived in the country. More imported onions are expected to be available on the markets this week. Marcos has approved the import of the onions in an effort to address the onion shortage and rising onion prices in the country. Bill to expand the anti-agricultural smuggling law Meanwhile, Senator J.V. Ejercito introduced ...

Source: Uiennieuws