PNA file photo
MANILA — The Department of Agriculture (DA) on Monday assured that local manufacturers will be prioritized in the procurement of biofertilizers.
In a teleradio interview, DA Undersecretary Leocadio Sebastian said assisting the farmers is stipulated under Memorandum Order No. 32 given the significant number of manufacturers in the country.
“Nasa guidelines natin na priority natin ang local kasi nga gusto nating mabawasan ‘yung pag-import natin ng inorganic fertilizer na kung saan napakamahal (It’s in the guidelines to prioritize the local because we want to reduce our inorganic fertilizer importation which is very expensive),” he said.
Sebastian said the administration wanted to prevent what happened in the previous year when farmers suffered from the effects of mounting prices of imported fertilizers, which have hit as much as PHP3,000 per bag.
Sebastian also clarified the fertilizer price of PHP2,000 indicated in the memorandum was just an illustration and may still be adjusted.
“So, kung mangyayari ‘yung mas mababang presyo, edi siyempre, ‘yun ‘yung gagamitin mo na pamkumpara sa procurement process. Kasi procurement naman iyan e, kahit ‘yung presyo na PHP2,000, ‘yung presyo na biofertilizer, hindi ‘yan naka-stick, for illustration purposes lang ang nakalagay doon (So if the price drops, of course, that’s what you’ll be using for the comparison in the procurement process. Because that’s procurement, even the PHP2,000 price, the biofertilizer price, [we’ll not] stick to it. It’s just for illustration purposes),” he said.
He added the memorandum was drafted last April when the average fertilizer price was still at PHP2,000 per bag according to the Fertilizer and Pesticide Authority price monitoring.
But Sebastian said the DA is also expecting the fertilizer price to decline as seen in the international market.
“Dahil itong Russia, nagbabagsak ng stock, dahil gusto makaipon ng pera dahil sa Ukraine war na ‘yan. Marami silang stock, baka bumaba pa ‘yun (Because Russia is bringing down its stocks because it wanted to save money due to the Ukraine war. They have a lot of stocks, the [fertilizer price] might drop further),” he said.
Sebastian made the remarks following several concerns that the memorandum might lead to another fertilizer scam.
“Kapag ikaw ay gagawa ng scam, hindi ka gagawa ng guideline na national kasi mabubuking ka na agad. Very transparent, pagkatapos very fair… Kakausapin mo na lang ‘yung magpapa-bid at impluwensyahan mo na lang sila na ito ilagay niyo na specification (If you will conduct a scam, you will not create a national guideline because you will be easily caught. [But the guideline] is very transparent and fair… [But for a scam], you will coordinate with bidders and influence them regarding specification),” he said.
Meanwhile, the Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (SINAG) earlier claimed that local biofertilizer may be procured as low as PHP500 per bag, while that of Urea fertilizer has declined to PHP1,200 to PHP1,300.
The DA, meanwhile, underscored that the guidelines do not only look for the lowest bidder in the procurement but also for a manufacturer that can train and educate farmers on the effective utilization of biofertilizers.
To date, the DA is still reviewing the budget for this year’s procurement applicable for a large-scale biofertilizer promotion.
It is set to implement a voucher system for farmers, with an estimated amount of PHP2,000 per hectare next year. (PNA)
