VIGAN CITY – Farmers of Ilocos Sur and Ilocos Norte are appealing to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap to minimize the importation of onion and garlic as well as totally eradicate the smuggling of the spices into the country.

They made the call in a manifesto signed during the Ilocos-wide Garlic and Onion Congress hosted by Ilocos Sur Governor Deogracias Savellano at the provincial capitol here on Tuesday.

They said the government must take positive steps in order to save the ailing onion and garlic industries in Ilocos Norte and Ilocos Sur largely because of the flooding of imported and even smuggled products.

In the congress, the farmers also sought regulated floor prices for locally produced assorted onions at P25 per kilogram and P60 per kilogram for assorted garlic, so farmers can cope with the continuous increase in prices of farm inputs, like fertilizer and seeds.

Records of the Department of Agriculture showed that the provinces of Ilocos Sur and Ilocos Norte are the country’s biggest producers of red shallot onions and garlic.

As a matter of fact, Sinait, Ilocos Sur is the acknowledged “Garlic Center of the North”.

Dr. Rene Espino, head of the high value crops division of the Department of Agriculture in Region One, admitted that the importation and smuggling of onion and garlic had greatly affected prices of these agricultural products in the local market.

“Actually, the main reason why prices of garlic and onion continuously decrease is due to the rampant smuggling and importation of theses commodities from abroad,” Espino said during an open forum.