DA withdraws objection to corn exports

MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Agriculture (DA) is now amendable to allowing the exportation of corn grits to enable farmers to gain a foothold in foreign markets ahead of the economic integration of Southeast Asia by 2015.

Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala said the DA would propose to the National Food Authority (NFA) Council that farmers be allowed to export corn to enable them to develop markets in neighboring countries before the full

implementation of the ASEAN Free Trade Agreement (AFTA) in 2015.

Allowing the exportation of corn grains would also protect farmers from  possible domestic supply glut as a result of anticipated surplus.

“We will be advising the (NFA) Council to allow the export of corn grains so that farmers will have elbow room in trade before the AFTA is fully enforced,” said Alcala.

“If we do not allow farmers to export, they may be discouraged from planting if there is a glut and prices fall,” he added.

He said an inter-agency committee is now preparing a report for submission to the NFA Council by February.

Corn production in 2013 reached 7.40 million metric tons (MT), slightly down from the 2012 production of 7.41 million MT.

The Philippines remains self-sufficient in corn, but production targets are still being reviewed to meet the rising feed demand of livestock raisers especially now that new foreign markets have opened.

South Korea has opened its doors to Philippine chicken export while Japan has begun accepting peking duck shipments.

This year, the Philippines aims to surpass is current sufficiency level to enable corn producers to both export and meet domestic demand.

Despite good production, the government was hesitant to allow corn producers to export to keep domestic supply stable.

Corn growers, however, have been allowed to ship silage to South Korea.

The DA wants the corn sector to be fully compliant with international export standards before it is allowed to export.

Alcala wants the local corn sector to be competitive in time for the economic integration of Southeast Asian economies by 2015 so the Philippines gets a piece of the export market dominated by the United States.

Malaysia, a neighboring southeast Asian nation, for instance, still gets most of their corn requirements from the US.

Corn growers are urged to adopt best practices in post-harvest to improve quality.

Only 15 percent of the domestic harvest is dried properly, the rest are dried along public roads. Export grade corn must have a moisture content of only 14 percent and zero aflatoxin level, attainable though the use of modern drying technologies.