Rebidding of corn imports too late — DA

The Department of Agriculture (DA) is worried that the rebidding of the importation of 150,000 metric tons (MT) of corn next month by the National Food Authority (NFA) may be too late and shipment might come in just when the harvest season for corn begins in November.

"The importation of corn has to be done very soon and it should come by October, not after that month because it could cause domestic prices of corn to collapse," said Agriculture Secretary Luis Lorenzo Jr.

The corn importation is necessary to keep production costs of local feedmillers and livestock producers reasonable.

Feedmillers and livestock growers earlier refused to buy the P8.22 per kilo ex-vessel price computation of NFA during the Sept.10 bidding.

They said that on top of the offered price of $120.95 per MT (C&F) by traders equivalent to P8 per kilo, government has asked for an additional P0.22 per kilo financing charge.

NFA Deputy Administrator Gregorio Y. Tan Jr. said NFA is scheduling bidding in the first week of October, but stressed that delivery within October will solely depend on suppliers’ ability to meet this deadline.

"Sailing period is only five to seven days from China. The schedule of bidding will be in the first week of October, but it’s all up to suppliers to load it and send it to the Philippines within October," he said.

The domestic livestock sector requested government to import corn, citing the destruction of more than 400,000 MT of corn in Isabela after a series of supertyphoons that hit the corn-producing region in July and August. – Rocel Felix