ere is a letter: I
read with interest your column in Malaya about the [smuggling of onions] and
cannot believe that the Bureau of Plant Industry simply ignored your concerns.
My mother is from Nueva Ecija and would like to start a
business in trading and growing onion.
From last year‘s unfortunate fall of local onion industry,
will there be another of that sort for the Year of the Rat? Has there been
action on the side of the Department of Agriculture and BPI to solve the
problem?. What is the outlook for the industry this year?
Thanks and more power! REY UMALI, Davao City reynato umali
<rpumali@yahoo.com>
***
The following was received from the Bureau of Plant Industry:
Am Baby Ramilo of the Bureau of Plant Industry’s Information
Office. Am sorry that your piece last week is answered just now. That notice
your wrote about as given to Los Baños Station was never received by the
Director.
Indeed, the onion story is an interesting one.
Maybe someday we can meet and talk about some funny or rather
annoying anecdotes of the Allium sepa Task Force in the BPI which works on the
verification on some important issues on onions.
The following is response (also unedited) of Plant Industry
officer In charge Joel S. Rudinas and Plant Quarantine Service officer-in-charge
Larry R. Lacson. Baby Ramilo, Information Office, Bureau Of Plant Industry,
buplant@yahoo.com.
***
The bureau of plant industry made its last issuance pf Plant
Quarantine Clearance (Import Permit) for fresh onions last January 24, 2007.
As a routine practice, those import permits were issued only
after consulting the onion stakeholders especially the farmers or growers.
The BPI since that last issuance has not issued a singe
import permit for fresh onion sincere based on field verifications there is
sufficient volume of local onion to satisfy the domestic demand.
The farmer’s welfare is one among the outmost concern
whenever BPI decides on the matters of onion importation. The price of onion in
the market also plays a major role on BPOIU decision-making process.
The BPI cannot be a party to illegal importation of fresh
onions since it is the one issuing permit whenever necessary to protect also the
welfare of consumers from onion hoarding by some market players. Recently, the
BPI, through its vigilance spotted imported fresh onions being unloaded in a
cold storage in San Rafael Village, Balut, Tondo which paved the way for the
confiscation of some 14,500 bags of onions. The BPI personnel risk their lives
just to have those smuggled onions seized, considering that those are already
outside the port area
