CAGAYAN DE ORO — Sammy Tumarong went to the city proper here on Tuesday, August 26, to obtain documentary and medical requirements for him to find a new job. He is one of the around 1,500 workers who became jobless after a banana exporter company in Bukidnon ceased operations this month.

Tumarong lamented the closure of Agrinanas Development Company Incorporated (ADCI) in the neighboring municipality of Talakag where he worked for almost five years as a caretaker of banana produce. ADCI operations in Libona town in Bukidnon, one of the provinces in the Northern Mindanao region, were also halted.

“It’s so saddening to lose a job, especially for my co-workers who have children to support,” he told Bulatlat in the vernacular.

According to the cessation notice from ADCI that was posted by a certain Facebook user, the company said that it continuously encountered challenges since last year in meeting its target based on their productivity, especially the “cost per box.” The problem it faced continues despite efforts to recover, prompting the company to decide to stop its operations.

Workers had been informed that the last packing operation was on August 19. They no longer needed to report for work afterwards although they will be paid until September 20.

High tariff

The high tariff under the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA) has been the major challenge of Philippine banana exporters, according to a release published by the Department of Agriculture (DA) in March after the delegation and representatives from the Philippine banana industry met with Japanese importers in Tokyo.

In this deal, which was signed in 2006, Japan—the largest market for Philippine bananas—collects an 18-percent tariff on bananas they imported from the Philippines from April to September and a lower 8-percent tariff from October to March. 

Meanwhile, Japan imposes “zero or preferential” tariffs, the DA said, on bananas imported from Cambodia, Laos, Mexico, and Vietnam. Therefore, the agriculture department is pushing for tariff reduction. 

According to the Philippine Banana Industry Roadmap 2021-2025, citing the data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the country produced nine million metric tons (MT) of bananas in 2020, of which 85 percent were from Mindanao. The regions of Davao, Northern Mindanao, and SOCCSKSARGEN were the top producing areas.

Meanwhile, the Philippines contributes an 11-percent share to the world banana trade (fresh and processed bananas) with an estimated export value of $1.6 billion in the same year.

Although it is not yet clear if this long-standing issue has a connection to ADCI’s case, Tomarong urged the Marcos Jr. administration to address the major concerns affecting the banana industry so that no workers will lose their jobs. “If this continues, more companies will close,” he said.

Call for assistance

Jenesa Doroteo Bayoc, an employee for eight years in ADCI Libona, told Bombo Radyo Malaybalay in an interview that they were shocked upon receiving the pronouncement, expressing concern considering that they have children to support. Her husband, who worked for the company for 15 years as well, also became jobless after the sudden closure.

Despite what happened, several ADCI workers, including Tomarong and Bayoc, remained grateful to the company as the latter promised to release the benefits under their severance pay.

Nevertheless, Tomarong hoped that the local governments of Libona and Talakag would also provide assistance to the affected workers. He has not yet received any government aid, but he said they were already profiled by the Public Employment Service Office for possible assistance. (DAA)