The chairman of Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (SINAG) has expressed confusion over the decision of the Department of Agriculture (DA) to import 60,000 metric tons of fish in the first quarter of the year.
The DA and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) cited a shortage in fish, particularly small pelagic fishes, in the decision.
However, SINAG chair Rosendo So said this was not the case.
"Sa ngayon wala talaga, nagtataka nga tayo kung saan ang rason bakit mag-angkat tayo ngayon," he told DZRH in a separate interview.
(For now, nothing, we are confused about where they found the reason to import now.)
"Sinasabi nila malamig ngayon. Wala talayong shortage dun sa nakikita natin. 'Yung mga sizes ng mga isda ay hindi apektado dun sa lamig," he added.
(They said it’s because it’s cold now. We do not see any shortage. The sizes of fish are not affected by the cold.)
"So hindi natin alam kung [saan] kumuha ng figure ang DA na kulang tayo sa isda."
(So we don’t know where the DA found its figures that we have a fish shortage.)
BFAR director Eduardo Gongona previously explained that the shortage of fish was due to the colder temperatures and the effect of Typhoon Odette.
He added that they only made the recommendation after they projected a deficiency in supply.
But according to So, the typhoon-hit regions in the Visayas felt the impact on the shores, and it could not have affected the fishes in the sea.
Gongona previously said the final decision will still depend on importers if they will apply for the importation since they are the ones who see the figures.
