Senior Undersecretary Domingo Panganiban of the Philippine Department of Agriculture (DA) welcomed H.E. Franz-Michael Mellbin, Ambassador of Denmark to the Philippines and Palau, on January 24, 2023 to discuss areas of cooperation towards increasing productivity and sustainability of the agri-fishery sector, most especially the fisheries and swine industries.
Ambassador Mellbin offered insights on the potential of semen importation from Denmark, which can help bolster the Philippines’ efforts against African Swine Fever (ASF).
In response, DA – Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI)’s OIC-Director Paul Limson, assured that current PH importation and quarantine regulations are being for local and imported semen.
Both countries also agreed to take knowledge-sharing opportunities to observe each other’s best practices and to study the latest technologies for efficient swine production.
Meanwhile, the Danish side also expressed their interest to explore fishery opportunities in the Philippines and to propose to the Philippines new and sustainable fishing methods and technologies.
In July 2019, the Philippines, through the DA – Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Fisheries Cooperation with Denmark. The said document covers the conduct of at-sea trials and exploratory fishing in both underutilized and traditional fishing grounds in PH, the transfer of updated technology, methods, and training to Ph in order to empower local farmers and fishers, and the initiative to assess the feasibility of midwater trawling in Philippine waters with the use of Danish fishing technologies.
Other potential agri-trade opportunities discussed include the export of ube and calamansi as some of the “new flavors of the Philippines” and providing access to agricultural interventions to small-scale coconut farmers and indigenous peoples as seen in the Danish coconut project in Palawan.
Among the European Union (EU) member states, Denmark is the ninth (9th) top destination of Philippine agricultural export products and the eighth (8th) top supplier of imported agricultural commodities in the Philippines. ### (Krystelle Ymari A. Vergara, DA-AFID)
