Quarantine officials of the People's Republic of China (PROC) have allowed Philippine bananas to enter their market after imposing stricter measures on the product coming from the country.
"I can tell you that we have a bit of good news. We have progressed in resolving the phytosanitary issue. We received word today that 30 to 40 containers have been allowed to pass in China. So that's a little bit of good news for us," Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte announced in a press conference in Malacanang on Tuesday.
Valte said that it was agreed upon that the Department of Agriculture will double-check all banana exports before leaving the country and its counterparts in the PROC will join them once the exports arrived there.
"It will be subjected to a joint inspection to resolve quickly any phytosanitary issues," Valte said.
To assist the local banana producers affected by the trade row with PROC, Valte said President Benigno S. Aquino III already ordered a study so that some measures could be extended to them.
Although the import restrictions imposed by PROC started to ease, the government is still looking for other markets for Philippine bananas, she said.
The secretary of the Department of Agriculture organized a team from the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) to go to China to check on the stranded banana shipments in response to PROC's claim that Philippine bananas shipped to have pests. Likewise, the Chinese quarantine officials have been invited to inspect plantations and ports in the country.
The Philippines is one of the world's top banana exporters with much of the fruits being grown in Mindanao. Its major markets include Japan, South Korea, PROC and New Zealand. In 2010, the total export earnings for fresh Cavendish banana amounted to US$ 720 million.
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