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The National Food Authority (NFA) will allocate ₱10 billion for its modernization program, set to be fully operational next year, aimed at expanding rice storage, constructing new rice mills, and upgrading of drying facilities.
The NFA said half of the funding was already granted last year, while the remaining ₱5 billion was earmarked for several infrastructure projects in this year’s national budget.
To be sourced from last year’s budget, ₱1.5 billion will be allotted to the refurbishment of existing warehouses to ensure that the quality of rice is preserved.
The remaining ₱3.5 billion, on the other hand, will be utilized to expand the NFA’s storage capacity by 800,000 metric tons (MT).
“This expanded capacity will help us address the current issue where our warehouse space is almost full,” NFA Administrator Larry Lacson said in a statement.
As it stands, the NFA has a storage capacity of 1 million MT. However, their inability to handle varying rice stock quality and age often hinders full utilization.
Lacson said building new warehouses, equipped with milling and drying facilities, will maximize storage capacity and enable better management of the country’s rice stocks.
Meanwhile, the ₱5 billion included in this year’s budget is earmarked for rice mills, drying facilities, and other infrastructure projects.
The NFA said this initiative aims to boost processing efficiency and increasing rice recovery rates, ultimately removing the so-called “inefficiencies” in post-harvest processing.
In particular, with the new drying facilities, farmers will be able to sell palay (unmilled rice) with higher moisture content, removing the burden of drying it themselves.
The rice produced such facilities is expected to maintain a consistent high quality—a move seen to help stabilize prices for both producers and consumers.
“These facilities will be a game-changer for the NFA, enabling us to purchase rice with moisture content above the current 14 percent requirement,” Lacson said.
The official noted that warehouse repairs are already underway.
He said several plots of land, donated to the NFA or made available for use through usufruct agreements, are also ready for the construction of new warehouses in Mindanao and Luzon.
The NFA is also overseeing the full upgrade of silos across the country, which aims to extend the agency’s capacity to store rice for up to two years compared to the usual six months to one year for bagged rice.
As mentioned, the modernization program is expected to be fully operational by next year.
Lacson said this would be around the latter stage of 2026, which is just in time for the summer harvest of 2027.