President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. told the Department of Agriculture (DA) to promote the ease of doing business in the country and get rid of non-tariff barriers to the importation of agricultural goods to lower prices and ensure food supply.

Administrative Order No. (AO) 20, signed by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin on 18 April but was released on Sunday, mentioned that administrative restrictions and non-tariff barriers drove up the prices of farm goods in the United States.

Non-tariff barriers refer to policy measures that impede trade, apart from customs tariffs. These measures may include import licensing systems, quotas, restrictions, and bureaucratic red tape.

Marcos said that the DA should take steps to make administrative processes and policies on importing agricultural products even easier to understand. They should also get rid of non-tariff barriers to help lower the prices of agricultural goods in the country.

"It is imperative to further streamline administrative procedures to foster transparency and predictability of policies on the importation of agricultural products in order to help ensure food security, maintain sufficient supply of agricultural goods in the domestic market, and improve local production,” Marcos said.

President Marcos gave the DA instructions to expedite importer licensing processes and requirements, reduce import application processing times, and exempt licensed trades from registering requirements, either in cooperation with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) or the Department of Finance (DOF).

In addition, the President directed the DA to lower or eliminate administrative costs and expedite the importation of specific agricultural products above the approved MAV, contingent upon consultation with the National Economic and Development Authority's (NEDA) Committee on Tariff and Related Matters.

Additionally, the DA is mandated to take proactive measures to enhance the logistics, transportation, distribution, and storage of imported agricultural products, as well as to expedite the processes and requirements for the issuance of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Import Clearances (SPSIC).

Other sections such as the Processing and Issuance of SPSIC for Agricultural Products, Guidelines for Importation of Sugar Products, and Guidelines for Importation of Fishery Products are specified in the Official Gazette. A copy of the AO 20, which is effective immediately, is available there.

Prioritizing the unloading and release of imported agricultural products is mandated under Section 5 of the AO, subject to the Customs Modernization and Tariff Act and other relevant laws, rules, and bureau regulations.

To ensure the effective and efficient implementation of the AO, President Marcos ordered the Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of Transportation (DTI), Bureau of Corrections (BOC), Philippine Competition Commission, Department of Interior and Local Government, Department of Justice (DOJ), National Bureau of Investigation, and Philippine National Police (PNP) to form a "Surveillance Team" under the direction of the Agriculture Department.

The AO lists the surveillance team's responsibilities.

The President shall receive a quarterly report from the DA, DTI, DOF, BOC, and the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) detailing the progress of the AO's implementation, via the Office of the Executive Secretary and the Inter-Agency Committee on Inflation and Market Outlook (IAC-IMO).

Executive Order No. 28 (series of 2023) created the IAC-IMO, an advisory council for the Economic Development Group tasked with recommending policies to maintain inflation within government targets, with a focus on food and energy prices.