Expert urges DTI to cancel PS mark of sub-standard cement

A commodity expert urged the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) yesterday not to allow certain brands, suspected of cheating consumers with their diluted cement, to carry Philippine Standard (PS) mark in their packaging.

Jose Tan, a commodity expert from the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) said that under Philippine standards, Portland cement should only be composed of clinker and gypsum.

He pointed out that cement which contain slag is a violation of the product standard set by the government for Portland cement and should not be sold in the market bearing the PS mark.

"Cement that contain slag should not be allowed to have the PS mark for Portland cement since it misleads the consumers," he said. "Consumers should know that what they are buying is pure Portland cement and not diluted cement."

At least two brands were discovered to have allegedly been distributing adulterated cement in the market, particularly in Regions 4 and 5.

Consumers have become suspicious of the cement because of its altered color, prompting them to file complaints at the DTI that subsequently alerted and ordered its provincial and regional offices to collect samples for testing.

The DTI, however, has yet to come up with its own findings for lack of technical expertise and facilities that could determine the presence of slag. Some DTI provincial offices have also expressed budget limitations in the monitoring of cement products.

The group of local cement procedures–the Philippine Cement Manufacturers Corp. (Philcemcor)–had offered the facilities of its members but there was no immediate word yet from the DTI whether it was keen on accepting the offer.

Philcemcor made an initial testing on the two particular brands in which it was confirmed that the contested brands contain slag, a by-product from steel manufacturers.