The Department of Agriculture announced on Friday an importation ban on onions until May — that may be extended to July depending on whether the domestic harvest will be sufficient to meet local demand.

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said the ban prevents a surplus of the high-value crop from driving down prices.

Laurel met with the Philippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food Inc., or PCAFI, on Thursday to discuss an increase in the domestic supply following a fresh harvest and the arrival of 99 tons of imported onions between 1 and 15 January. The imported onions were ordered last month but arrived only recently due to shipment delays.

“In principle, I agree with no onion importation until July. But that is on condition that if there is a sudden supply shortfall, we will have to import earlier,” Laurel said. “We don’t know what will happen because of El Niño.”

PCAFI said they expect a supply glut after an additional 40 percent of the land area was devoted to the cultivation of onions, adding that a harvest glut is impending as the armyworm infestation in some areas of Tarlac and Nueva Ecija is likely to damage only around five percent of standing crops.

According to the DA, the high onion supply caused its prices to dip to between P50 and P70 per kilo, and it could go lower when more onions are harvested in February.

“In some areas in Nueva Ecija, which accounts for 97 percent of onion production in Luzon, prices have dropped to as low as P20 a kilo,” said the agency. “Luzon produces 65 percent of the local onion supply.”

In December 2022, the DA noted that the price of onions surged to a record high of P720 per kilo due to the limited supply.

The Bureau of Plant Industry earlier reported that out of 10,217 hectares planted for onions, only 366 hectares were affected by the armyworm infestation, with 6.9 hectares “totally damaged” and 359.1 hectares sustaining “partial damage.”

Laurel and PCAFI will meet every 45 days to review the supply situation and “recalibrate the import schedule,” the DA said. They are set to meet again in early March.