FOOD exporters have asked government to renegotiate for increased quotas for products that will qualify for preferential rates under the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (Jpepa).

This was revealed by some 60 stakeholders during the Manila and Mindanao leg of the “One Country, One Voice” consultations with stakeholders for Jpepa in preparation for the General Review of the agreement in December 2011 by negotiators of the two countries in Japan.

“Since Jpepa is our first bilateral free-trade agreement, lessons learned and inputs from stakeholders will help set the policy agenda for our Philippine trade negotiators,” said Undersecretary for International Trade Adrian S. Cristobal Jr.

Some exporters raised the issue of tariff rate quotas (TRQ), a tool used to protect domestically produced commodities by the importing market, while at the same time, giving up preferential tariff rates for certain products at a specified volume.

About 81 percent of Philippine exports are now enjoying duty-free privilege in Japan, with the rest under TRQs.

Francisco Buencamino, Tuna Canners Association president, described the existing quota as “too small to be enjoyed truly by Philippine exporters.” “It is hard to benefit from the Jpepa with TRQs that are too small. The quota can easily be used up by a single company. What about other companies?” he said.

Another product that has low TRQ tag is pineapple. The TRQ for the product is only 1,000 metric tons in the first year of implementation and will go up to 1,800 metric tons in the fifth year of implementation.

Buencamino said we ought to consider this amount in relation to Japan’s total importation of the same product.

Jpepa came into force in December 2008, and is the country’s first and only bilateral free-trade agreement. It covers trade in goods, services, investments, movement of natural persons, intellectual property, customs procedures, improvement of the business environment and government procurement.

“We have to use Jpepa to our advantage. We need to review its implementation and discuss how it can be further improved.  While our end goal is to increase trade with Japan through Jpepa, we should also factor in the social costs of doing business,” Cristobal added.

Japan is the top export market of the Philippines with export value of $7.8 billion in 2010, accounting for a 15.2-percent share of Philippine exports.

Also at the Mindanao consultation, exporters raised Japan’s application of nontariff barriers for several Philippine agricultural products.