Inilunsad kahapon ng United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) ang isang bagong Food for Progress project na nakatuon sa pagpapalakas sa sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) regulatory systems sa Pilipinas.

Nitong Setyembre 27, ang bumibisitang si U.S. Undersecretary of Agriculture for Trade and Foreign Agricultural Affairs Ted McKinney ay nakipagkita kina Philippine Undersecretary of Agriculture Rodolfo Vicerra at Undersecretary of Health Rolando Enrique Domingo upang takalayin ang 4-year project, na popondohan naman mula sa mga kita ng donasyon ng U.S. agricultural commodities na mabebenta sa mga pamilihan sa Pilipinas.

Ang pinakahuling Food for Progress project sa Pilipinas ay ang U.S. soybean meal bilang donated commodity.

“This project aims to strengthen Philippine food security by delivering their consumers and agribusiness access to safe, affordable, and nutritious foods and feedstuffs through an improved regulatory framework based on risk-based principles and streamlined processes that ultimately enhance livelihoods while increasing opportunities for U.S.-Philippine trade,” diin ni McKinney.

“The Department of Agriculture welcomes this opportunity to enhance the capacity of its regulatory agencies in ensuring that food safety, sanitary and phytosanitary concerns are addressed alongside the flow of trade,” sinabi ni Vicerra.

Tiwala si Undersecretary Domingo na ang kolaborasyonsa proyekto ay magpapatibay sa regulatory function capacity ng Philippines Food and Drug Administration. Ito aniya ay makatutulong sa ahensiya na makagawa ng isang risk-based regulatory system na magsusulong ng epektibo at mas maayos na resulta.

“Food for Progress is a USDA program that partners with developing countries and emerging democracies committed to introducing and expanding free enterprise in the agricultural sector. USDA has selected Winrock International through a competitive award process to implement the project with an estimated $8.5 million operating budget. The project will pursue activities to strengthen Philippine regulatory agencies’ SPS systems through the adoption of risk-based and international standards to facilitate agricultural trade,” ayon sa US Embassy.