MEMBERS of the agro-industrial sector said that they welcome the appointment of Secretary Francisco Laurel Jr. to the agriculture department, but they likewise urged him to check various key areas as part of getting the country in gear for higher agricultural productivity. According to Danilo Fausto, president of the Philippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food Inc. (PCAFI), the DA secretary should start checking into the lackluster production of rice. This they said has caused the staple commodity’s retail prices to spike in recent months. The economists had earlier said that the higher rice prices have contributed significantly to inflationary pressures this year. “Rice is a politically-sensitive commodity. Looking into supply issues to put prices in check should be the first order of business,” Fausto said. Likewise they called on Laurel to revitalizing the country’s shrinking export market for fruits and other high-value crops. Fausto noted that the agricultural exports consist mainly of four products –bananas, coconut, mango and pineapple. He explained that there is a sizable untapped market overseas for such items as “ube” (purple yam) and durian, among others, but the local impetus to serve those potential foreign customers is lacking. Elias Jose Inciong, United Broiler Raisers Association (UBRA) president, asked Laurel to fast-track the process of putting avian influenza (AI) vaccines in the hands of local poultry farmers.