Senator Poe on extension of lower tariff rates on pork, rice:

We acknowledge the efforts of this administration to bring down the costs of basic goods for our consumers.

However, we need to take an honest look at Executive Order (EO) No. 171 and see if it achieved its goals of lowering prices.

For rice, the aim was to bring down the cost from countries outside of ASEAN. Different agriculture groups have already pointed out that rice from outside of ASEAN, specifically Pakistan, can still come in at lower prices even without bringing down the tariff. The Federation of Free Farmers and SINAG have also raised concerns on the revenue loss to government stemming from the bringing down of tariffs.

For pork, did it really bring down prices? The issue last year was the volume of importation and the Senate had to step in for the concerns of hog raisers to be heard.

Data from the National Meat Inspection Service show that the inventory of imported pork is still 30-percent more than last year's and remain above the 100,000 tons, and importers have said that they have been stockpiling ahead of the expiration of EO No. 171.

We need to see if there was profiteering. SINAG has been complaining of the drop in farmgate prices of pork yet retail prices were hardly moving. The extension of EO No. 171 now is no assurance that prices will go down soon as it is just extending what is.

We need to craft policies that take on a longer view of the situation with a wider perspective. Beyond consumer prices, we also need to look at this in its entirety--the challenges affecting local production, the friction costs, consumer preference, and the livelihood of our people.

Do we want to permanently depend on imported food products and subject food prices to fluctuations in the foreign exchange or do we want to be self-sufficient?

Measures that bring down prices for consumers must go hand in hand with measures that will support food producers going forward. Food producers are also consumers themselves and many of them have already taken a hit in the past two years.

Suriin natin kung totoong bumaba ang presyo ng bigas at baboy--sa gitna ng pinagdaraanang hirap ng ating mga ordinaryong mamimili at kinasasadlakang kalagayan ng ating mga magsasaka.

Dapat ring parusahan ang sindikatong hoarders at smugglers na diumano ay dahilan ng pagtaas ng presyo ng produktong agrikultura tulad ng bigas at sibuyas.