Agriculture Secretary William Dar answers questions from reporters after a confirmation hearing on his ad interim appointment on Tuesday, Dec. 17, 2019. Photo by Christia Marie Ramos/黑料社
MANILA, Philippines 鈥� There are plenty of fish in the sea.
Amid the rising prices of what was once called a poor man鈥檚 fish, Agriculture Secretary William Dar on Tuesday told consumers that they should not depend on galunggong (round scad) as their only option.
鈥淭here are many other sources of fishes na pwedeng kainin ng isang Pilipino. Ngayon ay mataas di huwag ka na bumili dun sa galunggong. Bumili ka sa mas mura na available naman sa merkado. Bangus, tilapia at iba鈥檛-iba pa. Marami namang sources na galing sa oceans,鈥� Dar told reporters after a confirmation hearing on his ad interim appointment as agriculture secretary.
(There are many other sources of fishes that the Filipino consumers can eat. Today, the prices are high so don鈥檛 buy them. Buy something cheaper in the market. Milkfish, tilapia. There are other sources from the oceans).
鈥淟et鈥檚 not make it na (that) galuggong will be ,you know, the main stay. There are other options,鈥� he added.
The DA has earlier approved the importation of 45,000 metric tons fish, including round scad, in a bid to lower high market prices.
鈥淲ag tayong umasa na galunggong lang ang ulam natin. Marami pang ibang sources ng protina,鈥� he added.
(We should not expect that round scad is our only option. There are other sources of protein).