00:00Meanwhile, the government is again in a stalemate after the illegal smuggling of sugar was banned from the country of Vietnam.
00:08The so-called smuggled sugar is possibly being used for reselling.
00:12Vel Custodio is now back in the center of the news.
00:17More than 30 million pesos worth of smuggled sugar is being smuggled from Vietnam.
00:23The NasamSam of the Department of Agriculture, Inspectorate and Enforcement and Bureau of Customs in Subic Port.
00:29According to the SRA, 10,000 sacks or 500 tons of smuggled sugar were placed in an alert order
00:38after the authorities suspected that the cargo was misdeclared.
00:42Customs was surprised because even the sack said it was sugar.
00:49Then they put a paper label saying it's glucose and something else.
00:54So Customs was called for testing.
00:58Powdery white sweetener with 88% sugar and 12% glucose was declared as the contents of the smuggled sack.
01:06But if you look at it, it doesn't look like it's different from regular sugar.
01:10According to the SRA, it can only be used by consignees for lower rates.
01:16Physically, if you just look at it, it's sugar.
01:19If you use it, you can readily mix it into your drink. It acts like sugar.
01:27If this kind of activity continues, it may affect the sale of sugar in the market.
01:33If there are things entering this way unnoticed, if we plan, we base our plans on our production and the sugar that we legally import,
01:43our plans will be ruined.
01:45The supply that we are thinking of is different because someone is supplying it from a different route.
01:53It is also possible that it is being used for reselling at a lower price.
01:57Well, if the prices are very low, it disrupts the demand for the local produce, actually.
02:03So our farmers are at a disadvantage.
02:05That's why SO6, which became SO4, is very important.
02:09Because what we want to do is to improve all the data that we have so that we can effectively plant.
02:19The SRA is now targeting the consignee of the shipment.
02:22If it is proven that the sugar was illegally imported, it will be placed under the auction.
02:27It is still being studied as to what cases the consumers may face if it is proven that the sugar was smuggled and misdeclared
02:35and if it will be included in the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act.
02:39Vel Custodio for Pambansang TV in Bagong, Philippines.
