The shipment, imported from China by JRA and Pearl Enterprise, Inc., arrived at the Port of Manila aboard the vessel Green Pacific in July.-DA Photo
DAVAO CITY — The Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) have jointly seized a 40-foot container filled with fresh yellow onions, valued at approximately P3.5 million.
The shipment, imported from China by JRA and Pearl Enterprise, Inc., arrived at the Port of Manila aboard the vessel Green Pacific in July, during a period when Agriculture Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel, Jr. had ordered BPI to suspend the issuance of permits for onion imports.
Upon verifying the Inward Foreign Manifest, the BPI’s Plant Quarantine Service at Manila’s South Harbor requested a Warrant of Seizure and Detention from the BOC to inspect the container. The inspection revealed 25,000 kilos of fresh yellow onions.
“It’s impossible that this shipment was imported using a Sanitary and Phytosanitary Import Clearance (SPIC) since we only issued these clearances in late August,” said BPI Director Gerard Glen Panganiban.
He noted that BPI has intensified inspections of imported agricultural products at the directive of Secretary Tiu Laurel to enforce biosecurity measures and protect public health while supporting local farmers.
“We are fully committed to the newly signed Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act. We hope these confiscations will serve as a warning to unscrupulous traders and companies that the DA and BPI are dedicated to cracking down on illegal trade practices that threaten public health and undermine our farmers’ livelihoods,” he added.
On October 3, 2024, BPI and BOC officials, led by Director Panganiban and Port of Manila District Collector Rizalino Jose C. Torralba, presented the confiscated container.
They were joined by other officials, underscoring the government’s commitment to strict regulatory enforcement to safeguard Philippine agriculture.
