British Chamber looks forward to swift passage of anti-agri economic sabotage act

The British Chamber of Commerce Philippines (BCCP) anticipates the swift passage of the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act, which it consistently supported and identified as one of its key legislative priorities. Ratified by the Senate and the House of Representatives, the said act is currently being enrolled for submission to Malacañang. 

The first bicameral conference committee report has been ratified by the Congress in May 2024, however, Sen. Cynthia Villar, principal author and sponsor of the measure, noted amendments in the reconciled version of the bill, saying that: "Section 18 included the Department of Finance in the composition of the Anti-Agriculture Economic Sabotage Enforcement Group…The reason for this is to prevent connivance between smugglers and employees of BOC.”

During the third State of the Nation Address (SONA) on July 22, 2024, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. highlighted food security, easing inflation, and rising prices of agricultural commodities as among the key priorities of the government, further noting that, “Because of compelling emergency reasons, such as illegal price manipulations by hoarders, we were constrained to temporarily implement mandated price ceilings on rice. We also extended the reduced tariff rates to facilitate the importation of rice, corn, and pork until the end of this year…This will send a strong signal that we mean serious business.”

 The Philippine Statistics Authority reported that the headline inflation recorded at 4.4% in July 2024 from 3.7% in the previous month. BCCP Executive Director/Trustee Chris Nelson has consistently advocated for a stable food supply in the country and managing inflationary pressures through the recent extension of lowered tariffs on agricultural commodities such as pork until 2028 under the Executive Order No. 62.
    
One of its recent engagements involved hosting the Philippine-British Meat Trade Briefing and Reception in partnership with the UK Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) with key industry leaders from the UK and the Philippine government, and the private sector. The Philippines remain as the 2nd largest UK pork export market in Asia next to China and its 3rd largest pork export market overall. 

Department of Agriculture (DA) Undersecretary for Livestock Deogracias Victor Savellano delivered a keynote message on behalf of the DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel noting that, “Our agricultural sector stands to benefit immensely from these insights and opportunities presented at this briefing. By strengthening the trade relations with the UK, we can enhance [the] quality and variety of meat products available to the Filipino consumers. This in turn supports our local farmers and producers by integrating them into a broader, more dynamic market.”

Nelson further emphasized that, “AHDB has been our trusted partner in terms of reinforcing the UK-Philippine meat trade particularly on pork. We have also been working closely with the British Embassy and the Department of Agriculture to sustain that growth, while also mitigating the challenges on food security and inflation.”