Philippine corn industry global transition: some strategic issues and policy directions

The paper assessed the global and domestic trends in Philippine corn production; evaluated the state of global competitiveness of the domestic corn industry; and analyzed the impact of globalization (GATT-WTO), trade liberalization, and biotechnology on the profitability, cost competitiveness and subsistence level carrying capacity of the corn subsector. The analysis indicated that the state of development of the corn subsector is fragile to fully meet the challenges of globalization. This is due, among others, to the lack of consistent and congruent policies on the feedgrains-livestock subsector, particularly on price and tariff, technology, and infrastructure policies. This paper suggests five policy imperatives to enhance the global competitiveness of Philippine corn subsector. These include among others: (1) Technology Policy that includes, a more effective corn R-D-E continuum, improved long term yield stability, improved crop protection and pest management thru the introduction of new technologies, efficient use of fertilizer, and quality seeds; (2) Infrastructure Policy, focused on improving the distributive system and post-handling of corn from farm to major demand centers; (3) Price and Tariff Policy, that is congruent and consistent across the feedgrain-livestock subsectors; (4) Institutional Strengthening to eradicate red tapes and better efficiency in managing programs related to corn; and (5) Effective Governance for better relationship between the government as provider of public service and its citizens whom it exists to serve