Lawmaker seeks probe into online selling of smuggled onions

A lawmaker filed on Monday a house resolution seeking to conduct an inquiry into the reported selling of smuggled onions and other agricultural products on online platforms, which he described as being detrimental to the economy, the local agricultural industry, and the country's farmers and fishermen.

On House Resolution No. 1600, among points stressed by Agri Party-list Representative Wilbert Lee was Article XII Section 1 of the 1987 Constitution, which states that “the State shall promote industrialization and full employment based on sound agricultural development and agrarian reform, through industries that make full and efficient use of human and natural resources and which are competitive in both domestic and foreign markets.”

He also highlighted Republic Act No. 10845, otherwise known as the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act of 2016, which is the policy of the State “to promote the productivity of the agriculture sector and to protect farmers from unscrupulous traders and importers, who by their illegal importation of agricultural products, especially rice, significantly affect the production, availability of supply and stability of prices and food security of the State.”

The lawmaker cited that the alleged unsolicited digital selling of onions reported on 20 February 2024 was “booming online.”

“These illegally sourced or 'smuggled' onions are sold for as low as P25 per kilo on Facebook,” the resolution read.

Lee stressed that these smuggled agricultural products pose threats to consumers since they failed to undergo phytosanitary analysis conducted to ensure their safety for human consumption.

“Filipino consumers are also at risk from food product smuggling, as uncontrolled importation is most likely to blame for plant and animal diseases like African swine fever (ASF) and Cocolisap (coconut scale bug) that have plagued the country and the livelihood of many Filipinos,” cited in the resolution.

Lee said that if this issue is not urgently addressed, the sale of smuggled agricultural products will "continue to proliferate" which exposes many Filipinos to risks and jeopardizes the livelihood of local agricultural workers.

The latest price monitoring by the Department of Agriculture at major wet markets in Metro Manila showed that local red onions ranged from P60 to P130 per kilo, while medium-sized imported ones were sold at P90 to P100 per kilo.

Meanwhile, local white onions range from P50 to P120 per kilo, and the medium-sized imported variety is priced at P90 to P120 per kilogram.

Department of Agriculture Assistant Secretary Arnel De Mesa said earlier that the local onion harvest has improved following the crops being planted by more farmers.

"There is a tie-up now with our Kadiwas hopefully in our other crops in Southern Tagalog, in other areas that also need onions," the DA official added.