For the first time, RP will export corn
Othel V. Campos
Manila Standard
FROM a traditional importer of corn, the Philippines may now export the grain for the first time after local farmers entered into a supply agreement for 300,000 metric tons with a Korea trading firm.
“Negotiations have been ongoing for months now, but it was only this week that we received firm commitment from [Korea Overseas Grains Investment Co.],” said Roger Navarro, president of the Philippine Maize Federation Inc.
Navarro said his group and the Korean firm were still negotiating the price of the shipment, which is tentatively set at P16 per kilogram.
“We were told they [Koreans] will pay for the shipping cost, but this is not yet final,” Navarro said.
“We know they might haggle, knowing how expensive freight costs are nowadays. If they haggle with us, we [will be] setting a floor price of not less than P13 per kilo.”
Navarro said the Korean group was being more cautious after a recent scuffle with an Indonesia trader, who had shipped corn of poor quality.
The Korean group visited Mindanao last weekend to assess the Philippine corn sector’s capacity to supply corn, and then started negotiations for a possible corn supply agreement.
Navarro said his group was still studying how to ship the corn—by bulk handling or using 40-foot container vans.
“We have 20,000 tons of corn which we plan to use for a trial shipment next month, he said.
“We might start with at least 10,000 tons via container shipment.”
Navarro said his group started exploring export markets because they were frustrated with the government’s policy on support programs for the corn sector.
The group asked an inter-agency task force on rice and corn to increase the support price for yellow corn to P13 a kilo, but the panel increased its buying price by only P2.50, to P10 from P7.50 a kilo.
But National Food Authority Administrator Jessup Navarro said Friday his agency was studying if it could increase its support price for yellow corn to P11.50.
“We are sad that the government failed to understand our quest for a support price of P13. Much as we are frustrated with how the government answered our plea, we hope that market prices will be able to self-correct, and that the real price will be known and implemented,” Navarro said.
Based on the estimates of the Bureau of Agricultural Statistics, corn output for the second semester will be around of 3.71 million metric tons, 9.7 percent short of the government target of 4.11 million metric tons.
“This is just a forecast. We are conducting some production interventions measures that will help the government realize its target output for the year,” said agriculture assistant secretary Dennis Araullo, who is in charge of the government’s Ginintuang Masaganang Ani corn program.