THERE is enough supply of goods in supermarkets even if authorities decide to again extend the lockdown, the country’s trade chief said Saturday.
Trade secretary Ramon Lopez said in an
interview on DZMM radio that manufacturers produce supplies “on an everyday
basis” to ensure that stocks in supermarkets are replenished.
The Department of Trade and Industry also monitors the production capacity of
manufacturers, Lopez added.
“Twice a week may monitoring kami sa kanila how is their production capacity utilization. So mino-monitor natin ang kanilang imbentaryo, production capacity, pati ‘yung mga raw products and finished goods so that we would know na ang level ng ating mga imbentaryo ay [maayos],” Lopez said.
Grocery shoppers who have gone out to replenish their stocks have witnessed long lines and seemingly empty shelves, attributed to panic buying amid the lockdown that restricts movement and limits store hours.
Lopez had earlier said the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases has allowed manufacturers to operate on at least a 50 percent capacity to ensure stocks in supermarkets.
The DTI had also set limits on the number of essential products that could be purchased to assure enough supply for grocery shoppers.
“Basta kumpleto ang production and ang distributors’ system ay moving then very efficiently wala po tayong problema d’yan, that’s on the manufacturing side,” Lopez added.(ABS-CBN News)
