THE Department of Agriculture (DA) said that it is gearing up to expand exports of farm goods to the Middle East, which would require the halal industry to raise capacity.
“The Middle East is a sleeper… I think we really have to work on our halal capability… that’s an area that I think we’re yet to improve,” Asis Perez, agriculture undersecretary for Policy, Planning and Regulations told BusinessWorld.
In 2018, the DA launched the Halal Food Industry Development Program, seeking to boost the global competitiveness of current and potential exporters of Halal products, processes, and services.
The Department of Trade and Industry’s Halal Industry Development Strategic Plan 2024-2028 hopes to double the country’s 3,000 halal-certified products and services to 6,000.
Mr. Perez added the DA is looking at expanding exports of pineapples to the US market.
“For the US. We can still expand our market for pineapple in the mainland US, because now it’s a bit restricted where we bring our pineapples,” he said.
Pineapple exports are estimated to have increased 5.04% last year to 611,873 metric tons amid higher demand for the crop, the Food and Agriculture Organization said in a report.
The Philippines is the second-largest exporter of pineapple after Costa Rica.
“If only we can have that access to the US market for our pineapple and also our mangoes,” he said.
He said that “Manila mango” brand has a large market in the US, but it is not being fully tapped by Philippine mango growers.
“But that Manila mango is from Mexico. If we can only access that market. It is a big market, but we are not developing it,” he added.
Agricultural exports increased 10.7% to $1.72 billion during the first quarter from the $1.56 billion the same period last year, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority.
Mr. Perez added he will lead a technical working group to draft guidelines to streamline the application licenses or exempt licensed importers from repeated submissions of registration requirements to comply with Administrative Order No. 20 (AO 20).
AO 20 instructed the Departments of Agriculture, Finance, and Trade and Industry to simplify the administrative procedures for agricultural imports, while removing non-tariff barriers.
Special Order No. 768 requires DA agencies to publish in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of national circulation their respective guidelines on the streamlined procedures, requirements, and policies. — Adrian H. Halili
