Ham, queso de bola manufacturers seek price hike

Some manufacturers have sought the approval of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) for a price hike among popular Noche Buena goods ham and queso de bola.

According to a report by Pia Arcangel for Saksi on Tuesday, two local ham brands and one queso de belo brand have advised DTI of the price hike.

If the requests are approved, ham prices are set to rise by P2 to P37 from the usual P145-P525 range.

Main manufacturers of Noche Buena products or ingredients such as pasta, fruit cocktail, and tomato sauce, however, did not request for a raise in prices, said DTI Undersecretary Ted Pascua in an interview on dzBB on Wednesday.

Some milk and all-purpose cream manufacturers requested a price hike, but all such requests are for the approval of the DTI, Pascua said.

DTI attributed the impending price hike to the weakening of the value of the Philippine peso.

"With the devaluation of peso against the US dollar, some manufacturers said 'di na nila ma-hold 'yung presyo nila," said Lilian Salonga, assistant director of the DTI Consumer Protection and Advocacy Bureau, in a dzBB report on Wednesday.

Some supermarkets have also advised the DTI of a price hike among grocery goods in anticipation of the impending minimum wage raise.

"In-assure din kami na magkakaroon ng adequate supply so competition is at play at maraming players na pwedeng, at brands na mapagpipilian," Salonga said.

Pascua said the DTI usually takes not more than 30 days to decide on the requests for price hikes.

Metro Manila minimum daily wage for non-agricultural workers is set to rise by P21, or from P481 to P512, according to an order by the National Wages and Productivity Commission. —Nicole-Anne C. Lagrimas/KG, GMA News