Congress of The Philippines : Garin Calls For Inquiry on the Effect of Palm Oil on the Coconut Industry
02/10/2012 (4-Traders) - AAMBIS-Owa Party List Representative Sharon S. Garin, through House Resolution No. 2788, is seeking congressional inquiry on the effect and impact of the palm oil production and importation on the coconut oil industry in the Philippines.
The probe aims to address the problems besetting both industries as well as to develop concrete measures to further develop said industries, all for benefit of the Filipino farmers in general.
Garin said that with the growing popularity and demand for the cheaper and high yielding palm oil, there has been an apparent decline in the local production and demand of coconut oil in recent years.
"Palm oil nowadays is being preferred by consumers because of its cheaper price and abundant supply in the market. We would like to know if its production and importation is indeed threatening the coconut oil industry which our farmers for many years have been dependent to. We would also like to know that despite its high demand in the world market why it was never developed as a major industry in the country," Garin added.
Complicating the problem are reports of smuggling in the said importation which are highly detrimental to the local coconut and oil palm farmers. Allegedly, these illegal activities continue to flourish because of the public's continued patronage of dipout sales system of cooking oil. A cheaper importation of palm oil discourages our local producers and farmers to produce the same and inasmuch as local production of palm oil is also dependent on availability of oil mills and their crushing capacities.
Given full government attention and support, the palm oil industry is envisioned to play a significant role towards the country's economic development because of its high demand in the local and international markets.
Garin, however, said that "despite that palm oil would prove very attractive economically to our farmers, the government still needs to regulate and ensure that our land for growing crops will not be dominated by palm oil. Moreover, I believe that there is enough room for both industries to prosper and for our farmers to engage in."