THE VALUE of agricultural trade dropped by 7.1% year on year to $18.78 billion in 2020 as both exports and imports declined, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported on Friday.

The PSA said agricultural exports declined by 7.1% to $6.20 billion in 2020. These products made up 9.5% of the country’s total outbound shipments last year.

Edible fruits and nuts and peel of citrus fruit melons, which accounted for the largest share or 37.5% of the total exports, were valued at $2.32 billion.

Meanwhile, exports of animal or vegetable fats and oils and their cleavage products were worth $32 million; preparations of meat, of fish or of crustaceans, molluscs, and other aquatic invertebrates were valued at $231.49 million; and preparations of vegetables, fruit, nuts or other parts of plants were at $142.40 million.

Meanwhile, agricultural imports decreased by 7.1% to $12.58 billion last year. This accounted for 14% of the country’s inbound shipments in 2020.

Cereals were the top imported goods at $2.55 billion. Miscellaneous edible preparations came second at $1.56 billion, and residues and waste from food industries or prepared animal fodder ranked third at $1.43 billion.

The balance of trade in agricultural goods stood at a $6.38 billion gap in 2020, down 7% from $6.85 billion in 2019.

Among ASEAN countries, Malaysia was the top destination of the country’s exports, accounting for 33.8% or $226.77 million of the total, while Vietnam was the major source of imports at 27.4% or $1.19 billion.

The PSA said the top agricultural products exported to other ASEAN countries were tobacco and manufactured tobacco substitutes valued at $230.82 million; animal or vegetable fats and oils and their cleavage products, and prepared edible fats, and animal or vegetable waxes at $126.52 million; and preparations of cereals, flour, starch or milk; pastry cooks’ products worth $62.59 million.

On the other hand, miscellaneous edible preparations were the top agricultural commodity imported from ASEAN countries at $1.09 billion. Cereals came second at $938.76 million, while animal or vegetable fats and oils and their cleavage products, prepared edible fats, and animal or vegetable waxes were at $877.05 million.

Meanwhile, the Netherlands was the Philippines’ top trading partner among countries in the European Union, with exports to the country valued at $280.15 million or 20.9% of the $1.04 billion in shipments of agricultural products to the EU last year. — A.Y. Yang

A LAWMAKER is batting for a Universal Basic Income (UBI) system as part of the proposed third economic stimulus fund, with those with higher income to be taxed more to help fund this component.

In a statement on Friday, Albay 2nd District Representative Jose Ma. Clemente S. Salceda said the implementation of the proposed Bayanihan to Arise as One Act is “an opportunity to experiment with UBI.” The bill for the third economic stimulus fund was approved jointly by the House Committees on Economic Affairs and Social Services.

“The concept of UBI is that it is a measure to correct some of the faults of the free market, including over-accumulation of wealth. We need those measures in this country,” he said.

UBI is a system where the government supports individuals by giving them a set amount of money regularly.

The third Bayanihan bill, a follow-up to the Bayanihan to Heal As One and Bayanihan to Recover as One laws signed last year, aims to help the economy recover from the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

“COVID-19 was a jobs killer. It killed many small businesses. While Filipinos resorted to microentrepreneurship, mostly via online selling and the informal sector, these are not sustainable income flows. Meanwhile, the wealthiest segments of the population were able to buy assets on the cheap. As the economy recovers, they will only get richer,” Mr. Salceda said.

Mr. Salceda said the UBI system will be funded by revenues generated from rationalized taxes on the wealthy, which is part of the third package of the government’s Comprehensive Tax Reform Program.

“The most obvious tax on the wealth is the real property tax. We should update land valuations and pass Package 3 of tax reform, or the Real Property Valuation and Assessment Reform. I am also proposing that we impose higher rates on low-density housing for the rich in Metro Manila,” he said. — G.M. Cortez

THE DEPARTMENT of Energy (DoE) has cleared four more renewable energy (RE) suppliers for the green energy option program (GEOP), bringing the number of approved firms to ten.

On Friday, the DoE posted on its website the four new eligible RE firms: Citicore Energy Solutions, Inc.; Aboitiz Energy Solutions, Inc.; Prism Energy, Inc.; and Adventenergy, Inc.

The GEOP is a voluntary policy mechanism which allows users consuming at least 100 kilowatts of power to source their supply from qualified retail energy suppliers that generate electricity from renewables.

Firms that want to participate in the GEOP need to secure an operating permit from the DoE’s Renewable Energy Management Bureau. Those with permits are allowed to supply electric power to end-users, according to a department circular issued in April last year.

In January, the DoE released the list of the first batch of firms that qualified for the program: Bacman Geothermal, Inc.; First Gen Energy Solutions, Inc.; SN Aboitiz Power-Magat, Inc.; SN Aboitiz Power-Res, Inc.; AC Energy Philippines, Inc.; and Sparc-Solar Powered Agri-Rural Communities Corp. — A.Y. Yang

AIR PURIFIERS may be placed in the list of goods that must be certified for quality before being sold in the Philippines, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) said.

“Dapat i-certify ‘yan. Actually nirereview ng aming Philippine standards bureau para magkaroon din ng mandatory compliance,” DTI Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said in an interview with DZBB on Friday.

Air purifiers must deliver on the claim of improved air quality, he said.

Manufacturers and importers of products on the mandatory certification list must secure a Philippine standard (PS) mark to sell their goods in the local market. The DTI conducts factory and product audits.

The DTI in February returned ceramic tiles to the list of products that must be certified for quality, while plywood was put back in the list last year.

Demand for disinfection products and services increased amid public health fears during the coronavirus pandemic.

Intech Group Innovations Corp., the distributor of UV Care sterilization and air purifier products, in May last year said growing demand for their products at the time had led to global scarcity. — J.P. Ibañez