The Department of Agriculture (DA) said it is eyeing partnerships with the country’s major retail companies to expand the availability of affordable rice nationwide.
In a statement on Thursday, Jan. 23, the DA said this initiative aims to stabilize rice prices and provide greater access for Filipino households.
Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel had a meeting with representatives from supermarkets, groceries, and convenience stores on Tuesday to discuss the matter.
“This is a solution that we believe will stabilize rice prices faster and more efficiently. But we need to find the right balance to operationalize this properly and secure everyone’s cooperation,” said Laurel.
The DA said it is considering over 3,200 retail outlets across the country, including SM, Robinsons, Puregold, 7-Eleven, and MerryMart.
It noted that these retail chains are crucial in reaching millions of consumers on a daily basis.
The agency said this program will be piloted in Metro Manila, wherein rice prices were monitored to remain high.
This shall include the P29-per-kilo rice, which will only be available for the country’s vulnerable sectors.
The P29 rice, which comes from aging stocks of the National Food Authority (NFA), was launched last year under the government’s Kadiwa Ng Pangulo (KNP) program.
Additionally, retail stores will also have access to the DA’s Rice-for-All (RFA) program, which was also implemented through Kadiwa centers.
This will offer various rice grades, including RFA5 or the 5 percent broken priced at P45-per-kilo; RFA 25 or the 25 percent broken at P38; and RFA 100 or the 100 percent broken at P36.
Food Terminal Inc. (FTI), a state-owned corporation, shall handle the supply and packaging of rice distributed through participating retail stores.
The agriculture secretary said the pilot initiative will be monitored over several months before the agency considers a potential expansion to other regions with high rice prices.
“The DA is optimistic that this collaboration will serve as a model for future efforts to enhance food security and affordability,” added Laurel.
Earlier, the agency urged the Metro Manila Council to authorize the development of new KNP centers.
Laurel, in particular, wants to expand the stores across 150 public and private markets.
At present, such establishments are only present in 20 markets in Metro Manila.
The KNP, implemented by the DA, provides the public with affordable goods through farmers’ direct selling of goods to consumers.
Gov't warns retailers
The DA is urging retailers to comply with the maximum suggested retail price (MSRP) of P58 for imported rice, which took effect on Monday, Jan. 20.
On Tuesday, officials of the DA and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) inspected stalls selling rice at the Trabajo Market in Manila to ensure their strict compliance with the MSRP.
The government officials found that while vendors mostly complied with the new directive, there were still some retailers selling rice above the P58 per kilo limit.
She explained that retailers are just clearing out their inventory of rice purchased at a high price. Afterward, they will comply with the MSRP.
The DA did not impose any penalty during Tuesday’s initial monitoring.
The agency, however, warns that guidelines would be strictly enforced once the official regulations are released in February.
The MSRP for imported rice was implemented to ensure that rice remains affordable for consumers while also supporting the profitability of the rice industry.
Laurel had earlier said that further adjustments to the MSRP should be expected in the coming weeks.
He warned that if the MSRP fails to bring down rice prices to “reasonable levels,” the DA will recommend price controls and ceilings.
Violations of these measures may result in fines of up to P1 million for offenders.
Meanwhile, DA Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa is now urging retailers to negotiate prices with their suppliers to align with the P58 MSRP.
“Dapat mapag-usapan nila immediately ang stocks dahil sa susunod, hindi na puwedeng makakita kami ng ganito kataas na presyo, lalo na ‘yong P60 to P65 per kilo,” said De Mesa. (They need to immediately discuss the stocks because in the future, we should no longer see such high prices, especially those at P60 to P65 per kilo.)
“We’ll give them enough time to negotiate with their suppliers but eventually, in two weeks' time, we will have another round of monitoring,” he added.
Velicaria-Guevarra, for her part, expressed appreciation for local government units (LGUs) for ensuring compliance with the new directive.
She said mayors in Metro Manila are actively monitoring prices in their public and private markets.
Extra rice buffer stock
The National Food Authority (NFA) said that it requires an additional funding of P9 billion to comply with the law-mandated increase in the national rice buffer stock.
NFA Administrator Larry Lacson said the agency is now obligated to maintain a buffer stock equivalent to 15 days of rice consumption, an increase from the previous nine-day requirement.
In a statement, Lacson said this comes after the recent enactment of Republic Act (RA) No. 12078, which amended the Rice Tariffication Law.
Based on the agency’s data, 37,000 metric tons (MT) of rice is the daily average for national consumption.
Adding six days to the buffer stock will require the NFA to procure about 300,000 MT of palay or unmilled rice from local farmers, with an estimated price of P23 per kilo.
“We were initially allocated a budget of P9 billion for buffer stocking this year, based on the 9-day requirement,” said Lacson.
“But the additional 6 days will necessitate an extra P9 billion for palay procurement considering that our palay price procurement per kilo increased in 2024,” he explained.
Restoring NFA’s influence
RA No. 12078 also earmarked P2 billion for the NFA’s rice procurement program, which is an excess of the collected rice tariffs under the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund (RCEF) set at P30 billion.
The RCEF is a program of the Department of Agriculture (DA) that aims to modernize rice farming and support local farmers.
While an additional P2 billion for its palay procurement looks promising on paper, Laurel said it should ideally cover up to 20 percent—or around 4 million MT—of the country’s total domestic production.
Currently, the procurement rate remains at a minimal 3 to 4 percent.
“The NFA used to be a market maker—both a buyer and seller of rice. Now it is restricted to buffer stocking and buying rice from local rice farmers,” said Laurel, chairman of the NFA Council.
“We aim to restore its influence on palay pricing by purchasing more local rice, helping to boost Filipino farmers profitability,” he added.
Earlier, the NFA Council approved a resolution that enables the agency to sell rice to local government units (LGUs) for disaster preparedness.
Lacson said the NFA will release around 25,000 MT of rice every month, noting that this will not jeopardize the buffer stock needed to respond to emergencies or calamities.