00:00 update from the Department of Agriculture.
00:03 Asek Arnel, how is the price of onions and meat in the market?
00:10 Ninia, the price of onions is continuously going down.
00:13 In fact, the price of onions is going down by 20 pesos from 100 pesos per kilo last week.
00:20 This is the red, the red and the white.
00:23 Now, it's just 80 pesos.
00:26 Our meat is a bit stable, it went up by 10 pesos.
00:33 Our cassava is 330 pesos, our liempo is 380 pesos.
00:38 A good news, Ninia, is that the price of rice is slowly going down.
00:45 We are already earning 45 to 48 pesos for regular and well-mealed.
00:50 And we expect that the price of rice will be stable
00:55 because the price of onions in the international market is also going down.
00:59 It's just 570 dollars per metric ton.
01:03 And our harvest is also getting better from our farmers.
01:08 Alright, why is the price of onions going down?
01:11 The area is still good.
01:13 First, the area we are planting has increased.
01:16 Although there is an effect of the harvest,
01:19 it's not that big, it's only 18 hectares.
01:23 Out of the 10,338 hectares planted in the whole of Central Luzon.
01:29 So, it's a small part.
01:30 Because the question is connected to our media partner, Bella Carriazo of Manila Times.
01:37 How much is the effect of this harvest, this army worm, if you will.
01:44 President Fausto said that the army worm has a lot of effects.
01:51 He said that although they are recommending the suspension of onion importation,
01:56 it's really necessary to import.
01:58 Because the additional 40% farms that are already planted by onions might be wiped out.
02:04 What is our target harvest this year?
02:08 Nina, I'll go back again.
02:09 The total here in Central Luzon, more than 10,300 hectares planted this year.
02:15 It increased by almost 40% from 7,000 last year.
02:21 And based on the data that was submitted to us,
02:24 17.8 hectares were totally damaged and about 2,400 were partially damaged
02:30 with still a chance of recovery.
02:32 So, based on this data, the damage is not that big.
02:36 Although we are continuously monitoring
02:40 and our regional crop protection center is coordinating with our onion farmers
02:46 to ensure that they are not affected by the effect of the army worm.
02:52 We will also consult with President Fausto and the whole PCAFI,
02:56 along with our regional crop protection center,
02:58 to make sure that they are not imported because they have already planted a large area
03:04 until May and possibly extended to July.
03:08 And if there is a need for changes in the decision,
03:12 we will discuss this and we will have the right decision when the time comes.
03:18 So, at first, they said we should not import,
03:21 and now they want us to import because of the so-called army worm.
03:25 But you said that the affected area is not that big.
03:29 So, do we need to import or not?
03:32 Based on the data that our regional field office gave us,
03:36 the affected area is not that big in Central Luzon.
03:42 Although I mentioned earlier that we are continuously monitoring
03:46 to cover all the areas that have been planted, the whole 10,300 hectares.
03:51 So, as to the question of should we import or not, should we?
03:56 For now, the harvest is still ongoing.
03:58 The peak harvest of onions is this month of March until April.
04:03 So, at this time, we will first look at the harvest season
04:07 before there is a recommendation to import again to our line.
04:11 So, let's assess first.
04:13 Sir, this is about the NFA.
04:17 According to the suspended, what can the DA say
04:21 in returning the Office of the Ombudsman
04:24 on the suspension order for the 23 employees of the NFA?
04:29 The DA has not yet received the new order of the Ombudsman.
04:35 But the National Food Authority has already received
04:38 for Gino Ang Cordero, the Assistant Branch Manager of Batangas.
04:42 So, his suspension has already been lifted.
04:44 So, we are waiting for this new order, more than 20,
04:49 that the suspension has already been lifted.
04:51 And that is good news for the employees
04:54 because they were suspended without pay.
04:57 So, it is a big help for them to be lifted
04:59 and to be able to help their families.
05:02 Okay. Thank you very much, Asek Arnel,
05:05 for the updates that you have shared with us
05:07 from the Department of Agriculture.
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