Government seeks higher penalties on 'hot meat'

MANILA, Philippines -  The National Meat Inspection Commission (NMIC) has called for the imposition of higher penalties against the sale of hot meat or “botcha” in order to eliminate this commodity from the markets.

At the Senate hearing on the sale of botcha yesterday, NMIC executive director Jane Bacayo admitted that the current National Meat Inspection Code has failed to serve as a deterrent against the sale of double dead meat because the penalties are just too low.

“We are conducting many strikes and raids in the public markets and confiscated hot meat. But our predicament is the very light penalties imposed on violators,” Bacayo said.

Under the law, the penalty for the sale of hot meat is confiscation and the imposition of administrative fines. Bacayo noted that the Consumer Act of the Philippines also imposes very light fines against this offense, with fines ranging from P1,000 to P10,000 or imprisonment of two months to one year.

He proposed that the definition of hot meat under the law should be amended and the penalties for the sale increased to a fine of P25,000 to P500,000 and/or imprisonment of six months to six years.

Bacayo said the confiscation of hot meat has also been a challenge for the NMIC because they have to prove that the trader concerned is in the act of selling the product.

He said that the coverage of the law should include the transport and storage of hot meat. Bacayo lamented that the NMIC does not have enough personnel to cover the entire country effectively.

He said around 23 traders have already been apprehended for selling hot meat but only 13 cases or less have been filed in court.

He could recall only three convictions as a result of the cases filed.

The sale of hot meat has been reported mostly in Metro Manila, specifically in Que­zon City.

Sen. Manuel Villar, chairman of the committee on economic affairs, urged the concerned government agencies and the market owners to implement a wider information campaign on hot meat, specifically on how to inspect the product and the dangers posed by consuming it.