Still no sugar, spice and all things nice.

The fact that we are missing some ingredients in our kitchen and in our friendly neighboring food haunts puts the spotlight on the severity of our problems in agriculture. And the issue, which started making the news in January, has yet to be resolved.

Oh how we’ve become so dependent on food imports despite being blessed with agricultural resources. In the ‘60s, even when the world was experiencing a tumultuous time, including the Vietnam war, the Philippines exported sugar to the US.

Despite the chaos in the world at the time, the sugar industry was enjoying a sweet time, as sweet perhaps as Woodstock, the era’s music festival of unity and peace, or as sweet as My Girl by The Temptations, one of the top hits on the charts back then.

Decades later, we are facing a shortage of sugar, salt, onions, and a host of other commodities, which we now buy abroad. The result of this is that when a global crisis such as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine disrupts the supply chain or when typhoons strike or when a drought leads to soaring prices, we are left in a messy situation.

The Philippines is among the top five rice importers in the world, next to China and in the league of Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, and Bangladesh.

We’ve heard stories of beverage and fruit juice companies cutting down on the number of workers they hire because of inadequate sugar supply. Coca-Cola Philippines told a Senate hearing last month that at least four plants have suspended operations due to the lack of supply.

If the situation does not improve, these companies and their suppliers may be forced to shut down their operations.

Modernizing agriculture

Clearly, we are now paying the price of our failure to modernize our agriculture sector. Add this to the fact that our population – and so did local demand, grew exponentially through the decades that the industry was unable to cope.

The Foundation for Economic Freedom suggests “a phased shift to a cane purchase system that begins on a voluntary basis; phased out segmentation of the sugar market, which classifies sugar for export and for domestic use; and the strengthening of the sugar industry’s institutional support mechanisms, including maximizing the engagement of block farms and other small farmers in planning and program identification and implementation.”

“In summary, we call on evidence-based decisions on the need to import sugar and in what volumes; to consider the interests of sugar consumers, food manufacturers, as well as the sugar planters in the decision to import: and, finally, to shift toward a policy of removing administrative fiats in sugar allocation and move to a more market-based solution while modernizing the industry to make it globally competitive,” it said.

Inflation

The country’s inflation rate eased slightly to 6.3 percent in August  from 6.4 percent in the previous month.  This is within the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas’ forecast range of 5.9 to 6.7 percent for the month, while year-to-date inflation picked up to 4.9 percent.

The numbers are still high, but Socioeconomic Secretary Arsenio Balisacan said the government is striving to ensure that “Filipino households have sufficient and healthy food on their table, especially the poorer sector of the society.”

Government interventions, he said, include reducing transport and logistics costs to bring inflation down and to protect the purchasing power of our consumers.

“Most importantly, it is imperative to transform Philippine agriculture into a dynamic and productive sector to speed up our recovery and significantly reduce poverty in the country,” Sec. Balisacan said.

I find hope in these words because Sec. Balisacan is known for his extensive research in agriculture and development economics. He knows what to do and is in the position to help implement it.

In the short term, the government will continue to support the agriculture sector through lower input costs, innovation in farming, extension of financial assistance to farmers, and boosting the agricultural value chain.

Hopefully, as Sec. Balisacan said this would boost the recovery momentum while making sure that the most disadvantaged sectors of the country are assisted.

President Marcos’ litmus test

The good news is that President Marcos chose to take the helm of the agricultural portfolio, which means that he is serious in fixing the country’s food situation. This isn’t just a matter of supply and demand. There’s nasty politics, audacious smuggling and the lack of long-term solutions.

Actual results remain to be seen. Marcos, for sure, would be closely watched and how he addresses the problem in agriculture would be one of the challenges that would define his presidency.

Iris Gonzales’ email address is [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @eyesgonzales. Column archives at eyesgonzales.com