P37-M seized garlic to undergo sanitary tests

The P37-million shipment of imported garlic seized at the Manila International Container Port (MICP) has been subjected to sanitary and phytosanitary testing, the Department of Agriculture (DA) said on Monday.

 

In a news release, the DA said samples from five of the 24 container vans confiscated by the Bureau of Customs (BOC) for lack of sanitary import clearance would be subjected under such testing as part of the protocol for all agricultural imports.

 

According to Emerson Palad, DA Undersecretary for Operations, the laboratory test--which usually takes three days--was necessary to determine whether the garlic shipment was safe for consumption and free from pest and diseases.

 

The seized garlic may possibly be put up for distribution through the DA's Agribusiness and Marketing Assistance Service if it passes the test, the news release said. 

 

The said arm of the DA facilitates the garlic caravan, which can be found in various markets in Metro Manila.

 

The final disposition of the garlic, however, would be up to the BOC.

 

The garlic, weighing at 125 metric tons, arrived at the MICP in two batches on June 12. It was shipped by Jining Shuntianli Import and Export Co. Ltd. of Shandong, China, and consigned to McJayson International Trading, which last week denied owning the shipments. 

 

Garlic earlier seized at the Port of Batangas passed the sanitary test and "shall undergo the standard forfeiture procedures," the news release said.

 

Meanwhile, the DA said it "[expected] prices to go down further by the coming weeks" with the arrival of the first batch of legally imported stocks last Friday.

 

The department's latest monitoring showed that the price of imported garlic in some Metro Manila markets has gone down to P150 per kilo. —Rose-An Jessica Dioquino/NB, GMA News