MANILA– The Philippines said on Wednesday more than 700 cases of smuggled goods, including farm products, were recorded in 2022, as it warned travellers against smuggling vegetables and fruits into the country.

The warning comes as travellers, and even airline crew, were caught bringing in onions they purchased abroad.

Prices of onion, widely used in many local dishes, have more than quadrupled in four months to hit as high as 700 pesos (S$17) per kg in markets in the capital Manila.

It is now among the highest in the world and contributes to double-digit food inflation in the country.

The Philippines has been hit by onion production shortfalls in recent months, as farmers were discouraged to boost planting due to competition with imports.

The Bureau of Customs reported 709 seizures of smuggled goods with an estimated value of 24.28 billion pesos in 2022, and 137 of these were various agricultural products worth 1.87 billion pesos.

“Travellers may not bring in vegetables (regardless of quantity) into the Philippines without the required plant quarantine (for personal use) or sanitary and phytosanitary import clearance (for commercial use) from the Bureau of Plant Industry,” the bureau said.

It added that all importations of agricultural products, except those selected under the “super green lane facility”, are identified as high-risk commodities. XINHUA