PRICES of meat are expected to climb in the coming months leading up to the Christmas holidays as costs continue to increase, according to the Meat Importers and Traders Association (MITA).
MITA President Emeritus Jess Cham said that meat import prices are expected to increase given the delivery delays, and the higher landed costs.
“‘Yun pong gastusin o puhunan o landed cost ng imported, tumaas na, kaya ngayon may presyo na tumataas, pataas ang presyo,” Cham said in a radio interview on Sunday, Oct. 2.
“Nadinig na po natin rin sa mga pork producers na by December, tataas sila up to P30 per kilo, kaya nandiyan po ang trend,” he added.
The latest data available from the Department of Agriculture (DA) show that prices per kilogram of pork liempo average P350, and pork kasim at P300 in Metro Manila as of Sept. 29, 2022.
Cham said deliveries have also been impacted by the lockdowns, as imports usually pass through other countries such as Taiwan and China before entering the Philippines.
Aside from this, the DA said the livestock and poultry sector incurred at least P12.8 million worth of losses due to Typhoon “Karding” which hit the country last week.
According to Pesa Onion and Vegetable Farmers Association Chairman Victor Layug, the typhoon affected several crops and vegetables such as onions.
For the yellow onion variety, this would translate to some P80,000 losses per hectare, excluding other costs.
The DA said assistance is available for affected farmers and fisherfolk, including 133,240 bags of rice seeds; 5,729 bags of corn seeds; and 4,911 kilograms of assorted vegetable seeds.
It also has drugs and biologics for livestock and poultry, and fingerlings and assistance through the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR).
The agency said it can also tap the Survival and Recovery (SURE) Program of the Agricultural Credit Policy Council (ACPC), and P500-million worth of Quick Response Fund (QRF) for the rehabilitation of affected areas.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) also said it has allocated P1.1 billion for its disaster response and assistance to those hit by Typhoon “Karding”.
Typhoon “Karding” officially left the Philippine Area of Responsibility last Monday, Sept. 26, after affecting several areas in the Luzon region with at least six dead and over 78,000 individuals displaced. (GMA News)
