Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap said aside from frozen meat, eight other processed meat items might penetrate other markets as the Philippines moves closer to being declared totally free of the dreaded foot-and-mouth disease by the Office Internationale des Epizooties or Animal Health Organization.

These meat products are luncheon meat, spam, pork and beans, lechon paksiw, pork adobo, sisig, chili con carne, and bistek tagalog.

Yap said, "Singapore is willing to accept Philippine exports of fresh, frozen meat subject to certain conditions, which are being worked out. We are looking at Japan, which is the world's top meat importer, as another major market for our meat exports."

The Department of Agriculture is eyeing the Japan market for freeze-dried and ready-to-cook meat products. Japan imported 1.32 million metric tons of meat in 2005.

Source: AHN