THE National Food Authority (NFA) will soon reduce the volume of state-subsidized rice it sells in local markets as prices have started to decline, according to Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol.
From the current 20 percent, Piñol said the NFA’s market-participation rate would revert to 10 percent. He said the suggested retail price (SRP) imposed on rice has effectively reduced the price of the staple to P43 per kilogram, from as high as P70 per kg.
Because of this, the agriculture chief said the pressure on the NFA to sell more affordable rice has eased.
“Unlike before, where so much pressure was placed on the NFA rice stocks because of the huge difference in prices between commercial rice and NFA rice, right now the NFA could just limit market participation to 10 percent because of the availability of cheap rice,” he said in a recent interview with reporters.
Piñol also said there are “early indications” pointing to the possibility that the SRP on rice would soon be revised. “There are already indications that, after the first month maybe, we may have to review the SRP, and we may even bring the prices down.”
Last month, the NFA Council ordered the state-run grains agency to hike its market participation to 20 percent, from 10 percent, to make rice more affordable and ease high inflation.
The agriculture chief assured that traders and retailers will not be able to take undue advantage of the reduction in NFA rice sold in local markets due to the SRP.
Piñol said commercial rice retailers cannot price the staple beyond the SRP, as they would face hefty fines, which include revocation of their licenses and monetary sanctions.
“Traders and even big-time retailers adjusted the selling prices of rice when they felt that the supplies were limited, especially during the lean months of June, July and August,” he said in a separate Facebook post.
“This was precisely what happened this year, when the absence of the government-subsidized rice sold by the NFA in the market resulted in a spike in the prices of commercial rice, both local and imported,” he added.
Rice imports
THE NFA has released the terms of reference (TOR) for its purchase of 203,000 metric tons (MT) of rice via government-to-government (G2G) mode.
Under the TOR, the bidding for the volume would be on November 6, and only countries with existing memoranda of agreement with the Philippines can participate.
At present, only Thailand and Vietnam could supply rice to the Philippines via G2G mode.
Udner the TOR, the rice imports should be 25-percent brokens and must be harvested from June 2018 onward.
The rice imports must arrive to their designated ports not later than December 15, according to the TOR.
The NFA has divided the 203,000 MT into 10 discharge ports with corresponding volume: Manila (65,000 MT), Subic (55,000 MT), La Union (30,000 MT), General Santos (14,000 MT), Tacloban (10,000 MT), Davao (8,000 MT), Zamboanga (8,000 MT), and 5,000 MT each in Cebu, Surigao and Cagayan de Oro.