Canned sardine producers in Zamboanga City, Philippines, are concerned about their future as the conflict between rebels from the Moro National Liberation Front and the national government has hampered their production.
According to Channel NewsAsia, canned sardine production has been brought to a halt due to the clashes between the two parties, putting the economy of this city and the whole of Mindanao into jeopardy.
As much as 80-85 per cent of the country's sardine processing and canning is being done in that region and with production now being marred by the ongoing conflict, sardine processors are understandably concerned that they will not be able to meet next year's demand. Although Zamboanga's USD 70 million sardine industry was hoping to expand their export market, at present this might be just a distant dream.
The sector that has been hit the hardest has been the manufacturing sector, where local sardine canners are said to be losing about PHP 100 million (USD 2.30 million) a day, told the city's Mayor Ma. Isabelle Climaco-Salazar to BusinessWorld Online.
Climaco-Salazar, who is also chairperson of the crisis management committee, stated the agriculture, forestry and fishery sector has lost PHP 70 million (USD 1.61 million).
Zamboanga produces about 15 million cases of canned sardines every year, using 140,000 to 175,000 metric tons of raw materials. About 13,000 metric tons of canned sardines produced by the city and valued at around USD 16 million, every year are entirely destined for the export market.
The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) director, Asis Perez, has stated in an interview with Radyo Enquirer that although the fishing industry has enough produce to supply the domestic market until the end of this year, manufacturers will prioritize local production over exports as the city's fishing industry has been disturbed by the conflict.