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Friday, June 10, 2005
Seaweed group seeks tax perks for US sales
The Seaweed Industry Association of the Philippines (Siap) has submitted to the government its updated petition to include carrageenan in the list of products for tariff perks under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) of the United States.
Siap president Benson Dakay said that once included in the US GSP, the Philippines’ processed seaweed or carrageenan will be exported to the US at zero tariffs. This will enable carrageenan exporters to offer a more attractive price package for their carrageenan products.
The current tariff on carrageenan is 3.2 percent.
He said a low price of carrageenan in the US will stimulate and increase demand for the product, translating to more economic benefits to the Philippines, such as an expansion of the country’s seaweed farming and processing activities and an increase in employment and livelihood activities and income throughout the production chain.
This chain includes seaweed farming, harvesting and processing, as well as allied services or industries.
Dakay said Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Senior Undersecretary Thomas Aquino had written a letter to Siap, prodding the organization to submit its updated GSP petition on carrageenan to the DTI.
Siap had wanted to apply for the GSP in 2003. But the pollution case it filed against a US-based seaweed processing company in Mactan, Cebu prevented the organization from doing so.
Dakay earlier said a government official had advised the group to postpone its application while the case was still in progress.
The Environmental Management Bureau has since dismissed Siap’s case against the US company.
Siap is composed of seaweed farmers, farmers’ organizations, traders, processors and exporters, and the academe in Southern Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.
The country’s seaweed industry has a total workforce of 750,000, including seaweed farmers, traders, transport haulers, processors, exporters and allied industry personnel.
Carrageenan is a jelly-like substance obtained from red seaweeds. It is used in commercial applications, such as gelling, thickening and stabilizing agents, especially in chocolate milk, cottage cheese, frozen desserts, yogurt, pet food and sauces. It is also used in pharmaceutical formulations, cosmetics and industrial applications. JBN
(June 10, 2005 issue)
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