The Philippines is on a path toward becoming a failed state in terms of food security if it continues to rely on importation rather than boosting local food production, former Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel “Manny” Piñol warned Wednesday.
Piñol made the statement in an interview on DZRH News program The Situation Report on September 9, where he challenged the current direction of the country’s agricultural and food policy.
He said his definition of national failure is simple and non-negotiable: a country that cannot feed its own people has failed its most basic duty as a state.
“A country or a nation that could not feed its own people is a failed state,” Piñol said.
Piñol said the Philippines is not yet at that point but is moving in that direction, and the current trajectory must be reversed before it becomes irreversible.
The former Agriculture chief under the Duterte administration said the formula for food security is food supply minus food consumption, and there are only two legitimate ways to ensure supply: grow it locally, or import temporarily to fill a shortfall.
Piñol said adopting importation as a long-term food security strategy is wrong on two counts: it cannot be guaranteed permanently by any exporting country, and it destroys local farming capacity in the meantime.
“Kung magkagera sa West Philippine Sea at hindi makatawid yung mga barkong may kargang bigas galing ng Vietnam, Thailand, at saka India, where do we get our rice?” he said.
