THE DEPARTMENT of Agriculture (DA) on Tuesday said it seized P202.5 million worth of smuggled farm and fishery products at the Manila International Container Port (MICP) in January.
In a statement, the DA said the “misdeclared and misclassified goods” inside a total of 24 container vans were confiscated in several operations.
The smuggled commodities include red and white onions, potatoes and roasted sweet potatoes, imitation crab stick, frozen boneless beef, and assorted meat products.
The DA said the container vans were consigned to Seaster Consumer Goods, Inc. and Asterzenmed, Inc.
The operations were conducted in cooperation with the Philippine Coast Guard, Bureau of Customs, Bureau of Plant Industry, Bureau of Animal Industry, and Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, according to the DA.
It also reported that the goods which originated from Hong Kong, China have no Sanitary and Phytosanitary Clearance. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera