Philippines

Philippines Extends Reduced Pork Tariffs, Boosting Prospects for U.S. Pork Industry

Mon, 25 Dec 2023 06:02:17 GMT

In a significant development for the U.S. pork industry, the Philippines has announced the extension of reduced tariff rates on imported pork through the end of 2024, reports the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF). This decision, initially implemented in 2021 to address the aftermath of African swine fever, aims to stabilize pork supplies in the Philippines.

The extended tariff cuts come as a welcome relief for U.S. pork exporters, providing insights into the implications of these changes for both American and Philippine stakeholders. The tariff cuts were originally set to expire on December 31.

Dan Halstrom, president and CEO of USMEF, highlighted the specifics of the extended tariff rates, explaining, “The in-quota duty rate normally is at 30%, and with reduced rates, they’ll be 15%. The out-of-duty quota rate, normally 40%, will be reduced to 25%.”

The rates remain relatively high, Halstrom notes, yet the extension of reduced tariffs signals progress in creating a more stable environment for the pork industry.

As the affordability of pork for Filipino consumers is a key focus of the extended tariff relief, Halstrom emphasizes the importance of making pork protein more accessible to the average consumer, contributing to improved food security.

By reducing import duties, the Philippines aims to bolster pork consumption, ultimately benefiting both importers and domestic producers.

Halstrom explains that the broader goal is long-term tariff relief. He notes that making pork consistently accessible and affordable can lead to increased demand, with South Korea and Colombia being prime examples. In these markets, lower tariffs have facilitated growth in the industry, with per capita consumption rising over time.

The Philippines’ decision to extend reduced pork tariffs until the end of 2024 marks a positive development for the U.S. pork industry. As the nation continues to recover from African swine fever, these tariff adjustments contribute to stabilizing pork supplies and improving food security.

The hope is that the extended relief will pave the way for even longer-term tariff reductions, creating a mutually beneficial scenario for both the Philippines and the U.S. pork industry.

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USMEF Seeks Tariff Relief for U.S. Pork in the Philippines

Tue, 28 Mar 2023 19:51:51 GMT

As the Philippines conducts a review of its import tariffs, the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) is using the opportunity to encourage tariff relief for U.S. pork.

In an ongoing inflation battle, the Philippines were ahead of other countries to reduce pork and other meat tariffs, says Erin Borror, USMEF vice president of economic analysis.

“The Philippines had their tariff reductions starting in 2021, and this was largely due to their pork shortage due to African swine fever (ASF),” she notes.

In 2021, the country added 200,000 metric tons (mt) to the approximately 54,000 mt quota. Temporary reductions, from 30% to 15% in quota and from 40% to 25% out of quota, have also helped smooth supply constraints and mitigate impacts of ASF in the country, Borror explains.

In 2022, the country extended these tariff reductions, yet did not increase quota volume. While the tariff is reduced (from 40% to 25%), Borror says, it’s “still at the highest of any of the major importing countries.”

With ASF spreading in the country, Borror believes there is clear incentive for the Philippine government to extend tariff reductions for a longer period of time. Adoption of these tariff reductions could bolster pork consumption, continue easing the impacts of inflation for Philippine consumers and support both domestic and global pork industries.

For example, South Korea has been a country of increasing pork consumption through larger imports and larger domestic production helped by free trade agreements, Borror explains.

“Since implementation in 2012, [South] Korea’s tariffs on imported pork have been phased to zero. At the same time, Korea’s pork production has grown by roughly 30% to a record level and consumption has grown by 35% to a record level. That has been a great example to use on the benefits of free trade to everyone – domestic producers, consumers and the exporters,” she says.

U.S. Meat Product Showcase Connects Exporters with Southeast Asian Importers

Wed, 19 Oct 2022 20:41:12 GMT

U.S. red meat suppliers met face-to-face with buyers from the Philippines and Vietnam at the U.S. Meat Products Showcase, adding a personal connection between U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) members and exporters with importers and processors in the southeast Asian region.

Originally slated for 2020, the USMEF event, along with USDA, the National Pork Board and the Beef Checkoff Program support, was delayed due to COVID restrictions. However, Dave Rentoria, USMEF representative in the Philippines, says now is a great time to bring the importers and suppliers together as the economies rebound and events are allowed at full capacity.

“The marketplace has changed in the past two years, not only because of COVID, but also because the Philippines has reduced tariffs on imported pork, because of the impact of African swine fever has had on the domestic supply,” says John Herath, USMEF’s communications director.

Because of the reduced tariff, from 30% to 5%, and increased minimum access volume or the quota, Rentoria says the Philippines has increased their importation of pork. U.S. pork export values increased by 26%, with a 78% increase in the Philippines alone from 2020 to 2021.

Rentoria adds, “This is a good opportunity for us to also tap [the importers] and inform them of the qualities or attributes about U.S. pork.”

Seen as an area with tremendous growth potential, the U.S. Meat Products Showcase aimed to further support the goal of increasing red meat exports in the southeast Asian countries, highlighting the quality and diverse product offerings found in U.S. meat.

Extreme Growth Potential with Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for U.S. Red Meat Exports

Mon, 25 Apr 2022 19:43:20 GMT

Trade talks with key trading partners on the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework are gearing up, and U.S. Meat Export Federation’s assistant vice president of export services Travis Arp has more details on how this might impact U.S. red meat exports.

“Looking at issues like science-based trade, good regulatory practices and transparency with regulations and things that can really open more opportunities for U.S. exporters in a multiple group of sectors,” Arp says will be on the agenda.

Submitting comments on the ‘resilient trade pillar’ of the framework, USMEF explains the economic impacts of the region’s trades.

“In 2021, Japan and South Korea were the largest volume and value markets for U.S. beef, importing a total of 320,737 and 280,143 metric tons (MT) of U.S. beef, respectively; valued at $2.376 billion and $2.382 billion, respectively,” the comments explained. “2021 U.S. pork exports to Japan and Korea were valued at $1.693 billion and $556 million, respectively, making Japan and Korea the second and fifth largest value markets for U.S. pork.”

USMEF’s comments explained that the value of U.S. beef exports to the region increased by 22% from 2020 to 2021, with a 65% in Indonesia alone. Meanwhile, U.S. pork export values increased by 26%, with a 78% increase in the Philippines alone. These statistics show extreme growth when considering the U.S. market share in these areas are relatively low.

As the economic framework is still under construction, Arp believes the goal is to strengthen trade relations with allies in Asia, seeing the region as an opportunity to improve market access and open these markets to U.S. exporters.

“There’s an opportunity to address some of these systemic barriers to trade,” Arp says. “Gaining more beef access into markets, like Korea, and creating more opportunities for plants to get approved in markets like Malaysia and Indonesia, then this could potentially pose a significant boost to red meat exports in the future.”

Other framework details include promoting science-based trade rules, establishing regionalization agreements in the event of a foreign animal disease outbreak, such as African swine fever , and tariffs, quotas and import licenses.

Read USMEF’s full comment detail here .

Philippines Bank Reveals New Program to Help Increase Pork Production

Mon, 21 Jun 2021 15:35:47 GMT

The Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) is working closely with the Department of Agriculture and hog industry stakeholders in the Philippines to increase pork production to meet consumer demand and stabilize the prices of the popular meat in the local market, SunStar reports.

According to the Bureau of Animal Industry, the Philippines government has culled more than 470,000 hogs to prevent the spread of the deadly African swine fever (ASF) virus. Although the virus is not harmful to humans, it has been devastating to the pork industry.

In an effort to help hog producers, the bank is planning to roll out a special credit known as the DBP Swine Repopulation, Rehabilitation and Recovery Credit Program (Swine R3 Credit Program) to fund the construction of biosecure swine farms and the purchase of necessary farm equipment, the article said.

DBP, the sixth largest bank in the Philippines in terms of assets, is implementing this program to complement the Department of Agriculture’s Integrated National Swine Production Initiatives for Recovery and Expansion (INSPIRE) Program aimed at “calibrated repopulation and swine livelihood enterprise, establishment of breeder multiplier farms, and intensive and modernized production.”

Under this program, local government units and eligible private firms may borrow funds to establish swine breeding farms, wean-to-finish farms and consolidated swine facility projects, SunStar reports.

The program offers a maximum loanable amount of up to 100% of total project cost for local government units and up to 70% for private entities, with payment terms of up to 10 years, including a maximum grace period of two years, the article said.

PhilStar Global reports the DBP has aligned P12 billion for commercial hog production. It also set aside P500 million for its borrowing program to bankroll the upgrade of farm facilities operated by small firms.

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Tariff Slash in the Philippines is a Win-Win for Everybody, Zieba Says

Thu, 15 Apr 2021 20:26:25 GMT

Bottom line: There’s a big opportunity for the U.S. pork industry in Asia. Maria Zieba, assistant vice president of international affairs for the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC), told AgriTalk host Chip Flory that the recent announcement about the Philippines slashing tariffs on pork and increasing the quota of pork they import from the U.S. is a big moment for the pork industry.

“The Philippines is a market that traditionally consumes a lot of pork. Unfortunately, they’ve been dealing with African swine fever (ASF), and it’s really decimated the local hog herd. They’ve had to take some drastic steps and reduce those tariffs and increase the quota,” Zieba said.

The Philippines has been a market the U.S. has been dependent on for a number of years, but Zieba said there has always been untapped potential because the domestic producers have been afraid of importing pork.

“We have a really high-quality product, and we have good cost of production. That makes us very competitive around the world where we can provide this high-quality pork that’s very safe, and usually at a lower price point. I think that creates some tension with domestic producers as they face competition, but I think there’s space for everybody in a market like this,” Zieba said. “These are really big markets with really big consumption of pork. I think that it’s a win-win for everybody, especially the consumers of the Philippine pork.”

A Diversified Market
So, where does the Philippines fit into the marketplace? Zieba said the U.S. will definitely export a lot of frozen pork to the Philippines, but she also expects them to buy a lot of variety meats.

“We’re looking at opportunities in both those spaces of frozen pork and variety meats. The positive about this announcement is that the tariffs were reduced for all pork products, frozen or chilled. That tariff reduction was from 30% to 5%, so it was a really big slash,” she added.

Southeast Asian markets like the Philippines and Vietnam provide great opportunities to diversify and export products are not in high demand in the U.S., ultimately resulting in more profitability to the producer.

ASF on the Global Pork Market
As parts of Asia and Europe continue to battle ASF, the export market continues to face disruption. The Philippines does not recognize regionalization in Germany and has closed off that export market, Zieba said.

“That’s where this opportunity comes into play,” she said. “We’ve picked up a little bit in China. It’s certainly created a tremendous opportunity around the world for our product, just because we have those high health standards. Luckily, we are free of ASF and we’re doing everything we can to prevent ASF from reaching our shores.”

The need to prepare for foreign animal diseases and prevent foreign animal diseases from reaching U.S. shores is one of the key issues NPPC is highlighting to members of Congress during its Legislative Action Conference this week.

“This is an unfortunate situation that the Philippines is going through, and it’s part of the reason why we have also partnered with university and the Philippine government on capacity building projects over the last few years so that we can learn more about ASF and also provide some assistance,” she added. “It was a very difficult decision for them to make, but they’ve really seen that decimation of their swine herd.”

Zieba said she’s excited about the announcement about the Philippines and urges lawmakers to sign a letter co-sponsored by Reps. Ron Kind (D-Wis.), Darin LaHood (R-Ill.), Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) and Jim Costa (D-Calif.) to U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai, seeking her support for enhanced Vietnamese market access for U.S. pork.

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Philippines Opens Market Access for Pork Imports

Wed, 07 Apr 2021 15:10:10 GMT

The Philippine government announced on April 7 that it will provide more market access for pork imports to combat rising pork prices and stabilize supplies. The National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) said in a release that securing better access to the Philippines market has been a top, long-term trade priority.

“Since 2019, the Philippines has been battling African swine fever (ASF), and as a result, domestic production has declined, supplies have tightened, and pork prices have spiked,” said NPPC President Jen Sorenson, communications director for Iowa Select Farms in West Des Moines, Iowa, in a release. “While we are saddened by the spread of ASF in the Philippines, we appreciate the opportunity to send more high-quality U.S. pork to ease the shortage and the spike in prices.”

Beginning April 7, tariffs for imported pork under the increased minimum access volume (MAV) of 404,210 metric tons (MT) would be reduced from 30% to 5% for the next three months, and then 10% thereafter, the announcement said. Tariffs for imported pork above the MAV would be reduced from 40% to 15% for the next three months, and then increase to 20% thereafter. The reductions would be in effect for one year, NPPC said in a release.

This announcement comes on the heels of NPPC’s recent meeting with the Philippine Ambassador to the U.S. Jose Manuel Romualdez. NPPC has been pressing both the U.S. and Philippines governments to lower pork import tariffs since ASF outbreaks began in the Philippines, the release said.

From January through December 2020, the U.S. exported 49,660 MT of pork worth $121 million. Expanding this market access is expected to generate significantly more U.S. pork exports to the country.

“With a population of 109 million and pork as the preferred protein of choice, pork consumption will continue to increase as the economy grows,” NPPC said.

Not only is the Asia-Pacific region the fastest growing economic region of the world, but it holds significant opportunities for U.S. pork exports. NPPC said they will continue to advocate for the U.S. to rejoin the CPTPP trade agreement.

A Growing Opportunity

In December 2020, a new report form the National Pork Board demonstrated opportunities that could diversify U.S. pork exports in the Philippines. The market assessment was prepared by Gira, a global research firm, with funding from the Pork Checkoff and the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service Emerging Markets Program.

According to Gira’s research, as the Philippines recover from COVID-19 and ASF outbreaks, pork consumption and import demand will increase. This projected increase is counter to other key markets, where pork consumption is expected to shrink by 2030. Here’s a look at key insights from that report.

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Philippines Plans to Triple Pork Imports as Local Prices Soar

Mon, 18 Jan 2021 15:06:22 GMT

The Philippines is aiming to triple pork imports this year, the agriculture minister said on Monday, after domestic prices jumped more than 50% from a year earlier as African swine fever decimated hog populations.

The Southeast Asian country, the world’s seventh-biggest pork importer before local demand fell due to the pandemic, plans to lift purchases to 162,000 tonnes, Agriculture Secretary William Dar told a media briefing.

The Philippines mainly imports pork from Canada, the United States, France, the Netherlands, and Spain.

Philippine pork production was estimated to have dropped 20% last year as the highly infectious disease prompted the culling of more than 300,000 pigs, or about 3% of the hog population, based on government data.

“We are studying tripling the current minimum access volume of 54,000 metric tonnes per year,” Dar said, adding an initial 54,000 tonnes should arrive by February or March.

Pork prices have been particularly high in the capital region as the animal disease was mostly detected in farms on the main Luzon island.

Philippine inflation started creeping up in the last quarter of 2020, traced mainly to higher food prices, particularly meat and vegetables as powerful typhoons also hampered supplies.

To keep inflation in check, Dar said the government has decided to postpone a scheduled increase in tariffs for chicken imports to 40% and it would stay at 5% this year.

(Reporting by Enrico Dela Cruz Editing by Ed Davies)

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Philippines Investigates Pig Deaths for African Swine Fever

Thu, 19 Nov 2020 03:33:29 GMT

The Philippines is investigating a rise in pig deaths in some areas for the deadly African swine fever (ASF) virus, although no cases of the virus have been confirmed yet.

A crisis management team was organized after the Philippines Bureau of Animal Industry reported an increased mortality of pigs “raised by farmers in their backyards.” However, further tests were needed to confirm ASF, Philippines Agriculture Secretary William Dar said in a press conference on Monday.

Last year, the Philippines put safeguards in place to protect its $5 billion hog industry. It has also banned pork and pork-based products from more than a dozen countries, including Vietnam, Laos and China, where the outbreak has spread throughout the mainland, as well as to Hong Kong, Reuters reported.

The crisis team is tasked to manage, contain and control the suspected animal disease or diseases.

Dar instructed the bureau to conduct further confirmatory laboratory tests, including sending blood samples to foreign laboratories, to determine the cause of the pigs’ deaths. He said it would be at least two weeks before the tests would be completed.

“We have further upgraded our monitoring and vigilance, including the imposition of stricter quarantine measures all over the country’s ports of entry, airports, and seaports,” Dar said.

For more information on the spread of ASF, a virus that only affects pigs and poses no food safety risk, visit porkbusiness.com/ASF .

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