00:00Good evening, Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.
00:05The Agriculture Department is concerned about the danger of the import of imported vegetables and products that did not pass their inspection.
00:17There are people who saw this in a market in Pasay, so the DA is contacting other agencies to discuss this matter.
00:27This is Bernadette Reyes.
00:32Tiger Chili, Garlic Sticks, and Chinese Yam.
00:35Just by the name of it, you can already find it in some markets here in Cartimore Market in Pasay.
00:41But aside from that, some people said that it's embarrassing to buy vegetables here in Cartimore Market.
00:47Aside from the cleanliness, there are a lot of different vegetables here, just like this Tiger Chili, which is like the biggest long pepper.
00:55But according to the Department of Agriculture, it might be dangerous to eat these.
01:01It's big, but we don't eat it.
01:03Why?
01:04We're afraid because we don't know what they're doing with it.
01:09If it's from another country, what's in it? Why would they preserve the good ones?
01:15According to Agriculture Secretary Francisco Chula Real Jr.,
01:19smugglers sell different vegetables and it's not safe to eat.
01:24They were not issued with sanitary and phytosanitary import clearance by the Bureau of Plant Industry.
01:30I don't remember that the BPI has issued SPSICs for those types.
01:37They don't have a health certificate, so that is actually dangerous.
01:42We don't know if it's high in heavy metals.
01:45We don't know if it's rejected, if it has a pesticide content.
01:50The fertilizer they used, is it right?
01:53It's not harmful to humans.
01:56According to the DA, it's possible that the sellers don't know that these are smuggled,
02:01but it's important for them to ask for help to find the source of the vegetables.
02:06We only know that we got it from Divisoria and we're just selling it here.
02:11We will coordinate with the DA and DTI on the sanctions that we can give them.
02:19The DA and DTI will also help the Bureau of Customs to find the source of the vegetables.
02:26Meanwhile, from Php 58, they plan to lower the maximum suggested retail price
02:32or the highest sale of imported rice to Php 55 on February 5.
02:38After that, they will try to lower it to Php 49.
02:42By March 1, hopefully, we will break Php 59, the MSRP,
02:48as long as world prices remain as is today.
02:52For GMA Integrated News, Bernadette Reyes, Katutok, 24 Hours.
03:08For GMA Integrated News, Bernadette Reyes, Katutok, 24 Hours.
Comments