Filipinos urged: Buy Pinoy products

MANILA, Philippines — Buying Filipino goods would help local businesses cope with the impact of the pandemic and create jobs, a Cabinet official said.?

Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles yesterday urged consumers to put Filipino products in their grocery list, saying it would allow local firms, including food producers and manufacturers, to stay afloat while the economy is facing challenges. ??

“Local businesses will need the support of both the government and our people to overcome the challenges of this pandemic; and at this point food manufacturing is one of the industries that is poised to contribute positively to economic recovery efforts, as the demand for food will always be there,” Nograles said in a statement issued recently.?“Let’s go local, let’s go all-Filipino,” he added. ?
Nograles noted that food accounts for nearly half of the total output of the Philippines’ manufacturing sector. ??“When we support local food producers and manufacturers by patronizing their products, we help keep them profitable so they can retain and even expand their workforce,” the official said.

Traders warned vs product mislabeling

Meanwhile, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has warned traders against capitalizing on the “buy local” campaign, saying those mislabeling foreign products and passing them off as made in the Philippines would be penalized.

Some goods being sold and mislabeled as locally made include rice, chicken, cement and other construction materials, it said.

Businessmen who will be found guilty of mislabeling will face imprisonment of up to two years and fine or both under Republic Act 7394 or the Consumer Act of the Philippines, the DTI said.

They may also be charged with performing deceptive sales acts and practices, punishable with a fine or imprisonment of up to one year or both.

The department stressed that product label must include the “Country of Manufacture” if it is imported.

The label must also indicate if a consumer product is manufactured, refilled or repacked under license from the principal.

During Congress deliberations on the Bayanihan to Recover as One Act or Bayanihan 2, Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez pressed for the use of local construction materials for infrastructure projects of national and local governments.