The National Food Authority Council (NFAC) said it has approved only 15,000 metric tons out of the 300,000 MT it has allowed to be shipped into the country under the Department of Trade and Industry’s (DTI) importation scheme.
NFAC Chairman and Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol said traders who wanted to participate in the program lacked the necessary requirements. So far, Piñol said only Puregold has been given the go signal to import rice under the DTI’s out-quota rice importation program.
“The problem was that they did know that the National Food Authority requires rice importers to have a warehouse,” Piñol told reporters in a recent interview.
The warehouses, according to Piñol, should be adequate enough to store rice that traders would import.
The NFAC has relaxed the requirements for importers to bring in rice into the country. These requirements relate to financial capacity, warehouse capability and retailing capability.
Despite the failure of interested traders to meet the government’s requirements, the NFAC has no plans to abolish the importation program, which has no deadline, according to Piñol.
Under the DTI’s rice importation program, interested parties could ship the staple into the country on the condition that they would sell it at P38 per kilogram.
“This was approved long before we have decided on the out-quota program. Since it has been approved, why would we retract it?” Piñol said. “We will allow the DTI to use that program. The purpose of the program is good if implemented properly.”
Piñol said Robinsons Supermarket has signified interest to participate in the DTI’s rice importation program.
The DTI’s rice importation program is in line with President Duterte’s Administrative Order 13 that seeks to make available affordable farm goods at the retail level.
In October Trade Secretary Ramon M. Lopez said the agency’s rice importation program would be implemented on a staggered basis, with 100,000 MT arriving before November.
Lopez disclosed that four groups have signified interest to partake in the DTI’s rice importation program. Some of the groups include Philippine Consumer Centric Traders Association, Robinson Supermarket and Puregold.
The NFAC approved last month the importation of 350,000 MT of rice by the private sector under the DTI’s program.
Dubbed as “Presyong Risonable Dapat” or PRD, the DTI would endorse to the NFA the importer-participants under the program.
The DTI will submit names of their partners and they will be in charged for the selection of their partners,T Piñol said. The NFA will be issuing permits to whoever will be recommended by the DTI to participate in this program.”
Image credits: Bloomberg