President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has raised the country’s corn import quota under the Minimum Access Volume scheme to 500,000 metric tons from 220,000 metric tons, aiming to ease feed costs and mitigate food price inflation.
National projections indicate a yellow corn deficit of approximately 1.422 million metric tons between March and December 2026. Executive Secretary Ralph Recto signed Executive Order No. 129 on behalf of the President on October 26, 2026, to keep poultry and meat costs from rising. The document was released the following day.
Executive Order No. 129 Raises Quota to 500,000 Metric Tons
The newly expanded quota covers MAV Year 2026. This opens the door for an additional 280,000 metric tons of imported corn to enter the country at lower tariff rates.
Yellow corn serves as a primary ingredient in animal feed for hogs and poultry. Grain prices tie directly to the cost of pork and chicken on consumer tables.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. formally submitted the proposal to Congress on September 29. Under the system, a proposed adjustment is deemed approved if Congress does not act within 15 days.
National projections cited in the executive order place the expected yellow corn supply deficit at about 1.422 million metric tons from March through December 2026.
Local production limits have driven the shortfall. Surging agricultural input expenses have worsened these limits, bringing greater costs for fuel, fertilizer, and freight, alongside weather-related dangers including potential effects from El Niño.
There is an urgent need to address the projected supply gap in yellow corn, ensure adequate and stable supply of corn for the livestock, poultry, and feed milling industries, and mitigate pressures on feed and food prices.
Executive Order No. 129, via GMA Network
Agricultural Pressures and Industry Concerns Over Local Farm-Gate Prices
The Department of Agriculture had pushed for the increased import volume. The department cited the threat of El Niño and tensions in the Middle East as ongoing risks to corn supply and feed expenses.
The agricultural sector has faced compounding pressures. El Niño damage to Philippine farms climbed to P8.57 billion by late October.
This increase comes on the heels of Congress failing to act on the recommendation to raise the MAV during the timeframe set by law. Officials previously discussed the proposal in an October 6 House briefing.
The order states that additional supply should arrive without prejudicing or displacing local producers
. Agricultural groups remain skeptical.
The Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura has opposed the proposal. The group questioned whether lower import tariffs would result in meaningful savings for retail consumers while warning that an overlap with the local harvest could depress farm-gate prices.
MAV Management Committee Tasked With Implementing Guidelines
The directive instructs the MAV Management Committee to formulate and issue implementing guidelines within 30 days of the order taking effect.
Those rules are supposed to cover how the additional volume is divided among qualified feed millers, manufacturers, farmers, cooperatives, and associations producing feed for their own livestock and poultry operations.
The order mandates that the distribution follow an equitable and transparent allocation
framework. It must operate as a calibrated, transparent, and time-bound measure,
signaling that the expanded import window is temporary rather than a permanent quota adjustment.
The MAV committee is made up of representatives from the departments of Science and Technology, Trade and Industry, Agriculture, Agrarian Reform, Finance, and Economy, Planning, and Development.
According to the publication terms outlined in the executive order, the measure takes effect immediately upon publication in the Official Gazette or a newspaper of general circulation.