President Marcos expressed confidence that the P20-per-kilo rice sold through the Kadiwa stores can be sustained without the need for government subsidies, citing record-breaking palay production and ongoing support for farmers.

In his podcast released on Wednesday, June 18, the President expressed confidence that the country will breach the recorded palay yield in 2023 (20.06 million metric tons) and 2024 (19.09 million metric tons).

In 2025, we predict lalampasan na naman natin (In 2025, we expect to exceed it again). So our production is slowly going up,” he said.

Marcos explained that lower production costs—achieved through improved yields—are helping reduce retail prices of rice.

“Since our production is already going up, bababa ang cost of production. Since bababa ang cost of production, di ang pagbenta, kung bibili ang NFA (National Food Authority), ang pagbenta ng NFA, pababa nang pababa (the cost of production will go down, then if NFA buys it, the market price would also decrease),” he explained.

According to Marcos, government assistance has been focused on providing machinery, rehabilitating irrigation systems, and supporting research through entities like the International Rice Research Institute and the University of the Philippines-Los Baños.

Kasi basta ipatuloy natin, magbigay tayo ng makinarya sa farmer, pagandahin lahat ng irrigation natin... maibababa natin (As long as we continue this—providing machinery, improving irrigation—we will be able to lower prices),” he said.

The President also responded to concerns that low rice prices could hurt farmers. He vowed that the NFA would not reduce its buying price for palay.

Hindi natin ibababa ang buying price ng NFA. Never bababa 'yan (We will not lower the NFA’s buying price. That will never go down),” he said.

He acknowledged how difficult farming has become.

Ang hirap na buhay niyan. Tumatanda ka nang maaga dahil nagsasaka ka (It’s a hard life. You age faster when you farm),” he added.

The President said the administration plans to increase the number of Kadiwa ng Pangulo outlets to expand access to affordable food.

Sa ngayon, we are providing the volumes that are sufficient for 51 percent of our population (Right now, we are supplying volumes that are enough for 51 percent of our population),” he said.

He revealed a proposal to fully fund the program through the national government, removing cost-sharing with local government units (LGUs) to expand its reach.

I'm looking at a proposal na next year wala ng contribution ng LGU. Ang contribution lahat sa national government (I’m looking at a proposal that by next year, LGUs will no longer have to contribute. The national government will cover it all),” he said.

Marcos also signaled long-term optimism for the rice sector, recalling that the Philippines had once exported rice.

We did it before already, eh. Nag-export na tayo ng bigas, eh. So why not do the same thing again (We did it before. We already exported rice. So why not do it again)?,” he said.

The key, he emphasized, is helping farmers through sustained investment.

“It's really, you help the farmers,” he said.