By Betheena Unite
Shipments of agricultural products like rice, sugar, and onions worth P15.5 million, misdeclared as other items from China, were recently intercepted at the Manila International Container Port.
Misdeclared agricultural products worth of P15.5 million arrived at MICP on separate dates.
(BOC FACEBOOK / MANILA BULLETIN)
Thousands of sacks of rice, sugar, onions, and other food products, according to the bureau, arrived into the country on separate dates in June. Upon arrival, the shipments were alerted for further examinations due to discrepancies in the weight and declared value.
During inspection, it was discovered that one of the four shipments was declared as 3,300 boxes fresh apples but it actually contained red onion. Two of the shipments were declared as red beans but were found to contain 5,300 sacks of refined sugar.
Further, another shipment was declared as 1,058 packages of t-shirts but actually contained 200 sacks of rice; 1,300 packages of other food products, 30 packages of medicine and 425 packages of other non-perishable items.
According to the bureau, the sacks of onions had an estimated market value of P1.8 million while the sacks of refined sugar are estimated to be worth P9.6 million. The sacks of rice and other merchandise were valued at P4.1 million.