This is something to cry about. (The smuggling, not the seizure.)
“On Friday, Feb 28, the Bureau of Customs (BOC) seized nearly PHP1 million worth of onions placed inside three 40-foot shipping containers at the Manila International Container Port,” reports Evelyn Macairan in The Philippine Star.
The report revealed that the onions, which arrived at the port on Feb 18, were reportedly smuggled from China. In particular, they were allegedly shipped by a Jangsu Shungan Trading and consigned to GAC Santos Agricultural Products Enterprise. They were initially misdeclared as gift items and kitchenware.
However, BOC examiners took a closer look at them because, as the report put it, “the declared items did not match the weight of the products in the shipping containers.”
The report further noted: “The entry of illegally imported red and white onions causes farmgate prices to drop to as low as PHP10 to PHP11 per kilo.” In other words, it’s bad for our farmers.
Photo from MorgueFile
