Navotas storage yields P3-M smuggled onions

The Bureau of Customs (BOC) has confiscated some 5,000 bags of imported red and white onions worth P3 million at a cold storage facility in Navotas City, after its operators failed to show proof that they had paid the proper taxes.

BOC Commissioner Ruffy Biazon said the items were seized by virtue of a letter of authority and a warrant and seizure order he issued on March 18 following surveillance operations by Customs personnel at Marcelo Cold Storage on North Bay Boulevard.

“The operators of the storage facility could not show import documents or proof of payment for the duties and taxes on the imported onions, so we had to seize the items to prevent it from getting into the local market.” Biazon said.

But Biazon declined to name the operators, saying they were still under investigation.

“This is to protect the interest of the local farmers from the ill effects of agricultural products smuggling, particularly onions,” he told reporters on Friday.

Local onion growers are partly blaming smuggling as one of the reasons for their industry’s stagnant growth, the official noted.

Biazon said the BOC is closely monitoring the importation of agricultural products, whether within or outside BOC premises, to ensure that only legally imported products reach local markets.

Onion importation is regulated by the Department of Agriculture (DA) and is allowed only during lean production months in the country to ensure the absorption of locally produced onions by the local market and also to prevent price distortion.

“We are very much concerned about the interest of the local farmers. This is the reason why we maintain a zero-tolerance policy for agricultural products smuggling. We will seize all illegally imported products, particularly agricultural,’’ Biazon said.

The BOC said the seized onions will be destroyed in accordance with the law. Tina G. Santos