The Bureau of Customs seized five shipments of smuggled agricultural products from China worth P24 million at the Manila International Container Port, officials said Thursday.
In a statement, the BoC said the misdeclared shipments arrived at MICP on separate dates last month and were declared only as apples, oranges and pears.
It also revealed there were discrepancies in the weight and declared value of the shipments.
Based on X-ray and physical inspection, the shipments also contained carrots, onions and potatoes.
Four of the five shipments were consigned to Ingredient Management Asia Inc., and one to Mcrey International Trading.
The seized carrots were estimated to be worth P15 million, the onions to be P4 million and the potatoes to be valued at P5 million.
MICP has heightened its efforts against the smuggling of agricultural products in order to fulfill part of its mandate which is to protect our local farmers against harsh and unfair competition.
The seized goods will be condemned by Customs since these were not covered by any Phytosanitary permit from the Bureau of Plant Quarantine and may carry plant diseases and pests that can affect our local agriculture.