Allow all food imports but give tariffs to affected farmers: Inquirer contributor

A worker stands on top of piles of red onion sacks in Metro Manila on July 4, 2016. - Reuters

MANILA (The Straits Times/Asia News Network): Whenever food prices increase, the government cites “insufficient local production” by our farmers, whether rice, sugar, onions, garlic and others.

Consumers complain about dwindling incomes, inflation goes up, while smuggling and price manipulation flourish. The law of supply and demand becomes a convenient excuse. But when the government decides on the importation, affected farmers and nationalists cry loudest when we buy food imports from Thailand, Vietnam, or China.