MANILA: The volume of poultry products that the Philippines would import from the United States this year would likely exceed 90,495 metric tons (MT), according to the USA Poultry and Egg Export Council (USAPEEC). USAPEEC Vice President of Marketing Greg Tyler said the increase in demand for US poultry during the holidays would allow American exporters to surpass their shipments last year. Shipments of US poultry to the Philippines hit a record high of 199.508 million pounds (lbs), or about 90,495 MT, in 2016. “In the last quarter you will see a big push for our exports, especially during the holiday season”, Tyler told the BusinessMirror in an interview. The latest data from the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Economic Research Service showed that US broiler meat exports to the Philippines in January to July reached 136.845 million lbs (62,071 MT), 23.53 percent higher than last year’s 110.777 million lbs (50,247 MT). Tyler said the 23.53-percent hike in shipments in the seven-month period could be attributed to the favorable price of chicken-leg quarters. “We have a very good outlook for our broiler exports. As long as the price is good, we think that our exports will continue to grow as leg quarters is one of our biggest exports to the Philippines,” he said. “Also, the US is [now an] avian influenza-free country. So we are exporting more to our markets and that’s part of the increase as well,” Tyler added.
Last year the Philippines purchased a total of 199.508 million lbs (90,495 MT) of broiler meat from the US, 26 percent higher than the 158.093 million lbs (71,709 MT) recorded in 2015. “We see that the Philippines would remain as a top 10 market as far as our broiler exports are concerned. The meat-processing association in the Philippines continues to develop new products, so we see growth in these markets,” Tyler said. He added the Philippines is a $70-million broiler market for the US and accounts for at least 3 percent of its total annual shipments. The USAPEEC is a nonprofit association that is an advocate for the American poultry industry on trade-policy issues. Because of its status as a not-for-profit entity, USAPEEC said it does not lobby, but it can and does act as intermediary with the USDA, both in Washington and at embassies and Agricultural Trade Offices around the world. The US continues to be the Philippines’ number one supplier of agricultural products, and the Philippines is its 10th largest market in the world. According to the USDA, the Philippines is the second largest market for US soybean meal (SBM), next to Mexico. Driven by a strong feed demand from the domestic hog and poultry industries, the USDA projected that SBM imports in 2017/2018 would reach 2.85 million MT (MMT).
The Philippines is also the top destination of fresh or chilled potatoes from the US. Data from the USDA showed that American producers exported nearly $6.6 million of fresh or chilled potatoes to the Philippines in 2016. Other American products that are shipped to the Philippines include pet food and processed food and beverages. In a previous Global Agricultural Information Network report, the US is projected to increase its shipments of pet food to the Philippines by nearly 10 percent to $28.8 million this year, from $26.2 million a year ago. “Exports of US dog and cat food to the Philippines more than tripled over the past 10 years and reached $26.2 million in 2016, up 10 percent over the previous year,” the report published on July 27 read. “The booming economy and higher disposable income contributed to the healthy export performance.” The Philippines also exports farm products to the US, such as coconut oil, dried mangoes, pineapple, and tuna. Last year data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed the Philippines continued to purchase more food from abroad, as agricultural imports rose 10.6 percent to $12.52 billion, from $11.32 billion recorded in 2015. Data from the PSA showed the increase in food imports widened the country’s agricultural trade deficit to $7.24 billion in 2016, from $6.17 billion in 2015. The country’s top 5 imports included wheat, soya bean oil/cake meal, milk and cream products, coffee and frozen meat of bovine animals.