The appeal came as more and more Japanese importers began striking deals with suppliers in Mozambique, Vietnam, Costa Rica, and lately in Indonesia, consequently reducing Japan’s dependence on the Philippines.
Under bilateral and economic partnership agreements, fresh bananas exported from those countries enjoy zero tariffs for their pooled quotas of 1,000 tons per year, as opposed to the tariffs for Philippine banana that ranges from 8.5 percent to as high as 18.5 percent. No quota is imposed on the country as well.
In a letter sent to the offices of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Secretary Gregory Domingo and Department of Agriculture (DA) Secretary Proceso Alcala, PBGEA executive director Stephen Antig pointed out that “it is only logical for Japanese importers to source part of their supplies from countries with zero tariffs to minimize business costs hence, reducing their demand for Philippine bananas.”
ln 2014, records from the Ministry of Finance of Japan showed 12 countries were Japan’s sources of fresh bananas, namely: the Philippines, Ecuador, Guatemala, Peru, Taiwan, Mexico, Colombia, Thailand, costa Rica, China, Mozambique and the Dominican Republic.
It was also noted that imports from Ecuador and Guatemala, two of the top exporters of fresh bananas in the world, increased sharply
Based on the same official report, the volume of Philippine bananas imported by Japan in 2014 is the lowest since 2005 despite excellent production volume in the Philippines.
