Lawmakers on Tuesday, March 28 expressed fears that formaldehyde, a disinfectant and preservative in aqueous solution, could have been used on smuggled vegetables, notably carrots, because they last longer than those locally produced.
During a hybrid hearing by the Senate Committee of the Whole, vice presidential candidate Senate President Vicente C. Sotto III said he suspected that formaldehydge could have been used, raising the specter of a health problem.
As he called for an inter-agency cooperation to fight smuggling, Sotto asked the Department of Health (DOH) to be on the lookout on the health effects on humans regarding the use of formalin in extending the lives of vegetables that come from China.
Use of such a chemical might cause cancer and even led to a pandemic, he pointed out.
In stopping carrot smuggling, Federico Laciste Jr., Department of Agriculture Assistant Secretary, told Sotto that the DA would conduct laboratory tests on carrots.
Laciste emphasized that the DA has no power to seize smuggled goods but the Bureau of Customs can.
‘’Nakakatakot to (This is scary). The DTI (Department of Trade and Industry) should do something about it. This is a health issue,’’ according to Agap Partylist Representative Rico B. Geron who attended the hearing.
Geron asked aloud why can’t government agencies do something as smuggled carrots are being sold openly.
Agot Balanoy of the League of Associations of La Trinidad Vegetable Trading Areas told the Senate that P14,5 billion vegetable industry is being threatened by unabated smuggling operations.
Balanoy said the Department of Agriculture (DA) denies that there is vegetable smuggling from China.
Despite a slow down in smuggling following s Senate probe last December, Balanoy said smuggling operations never stopped.
She mentioned the importation of Korea strawberries declared as ornamental plants.
Balanoy said consumers prefer China-produced carrots because they could be stored for about two months while those produced locally last only for two to three days.
There was a time that producers simply gave away their carrot produce, she added.