Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel is pushing for the amendment of the Coconut Farmers and Industry Trust Fund Act as a measure to revitalize the country’s “underperforming” coconut industry. Enacted into law in 2021, as embodied under Republic Act (RA) No. 11524, the coco trust fund...
The country’s rice production is expected to reach an all-time high this year, as government interventions and improved weather conditions drove strong output in the first half, according to the Department of Agriculture (DA). Based on data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA),...
The Department of Agriculture (DA) will expand the government’s ₱20-per-kilo rice program to include farmers of the staple beginning next month, expanding access to cheaper rice for one of the country’s poorest sectors. Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel said the government will...
The World Bank considers liberalized rice trade as a boost to the Philippine agriculture sector, even as the Marcos Jr. administration is moving to reinstate the National Food Authority’s (NFA) old regulatory powers. “Strategic shifts are underway to reinvigorate transformation of the...
The Department of Agriculture (DA) will hold on-the-ground consultations with farmers and lawmakers to prepare for the deliberations on the proposed RICE Act, which aims to reinstate the regulatory powers of the National Food Authority (NFA). Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel said he has...
The Washington-based World Bank has committed to lend the Philippines $350 million, or over ₱19 billion, for an upcoming Department of Agriculture (DA) project aimed at extending financing support to small agri-businesses. A July 11 project information document showed a project cost of $873...
The Department of Agriculture (DA) is set to receive a technical assistance grant from the World Bank that will support programs aligned with the forthcoming $1-billion program loan from the Washington-based multilateral lender. In a concept document published on July 7, the World Bank said its...
The Department of Agriculture (DA) is set to receive a loan financing from the Washington-based multilateral lender World Bank next year for a project aimed at supporting small agri-businesses. A June 26 document published on Thursday, July 3, showed that the DA is seeking an investment project...
The Philippines will see a slight improvement in its rice production in the upcoming marketing year (MY) as the government’s support programs for the sector—including the sale of subsidized rice—are now starting to pay off, according to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). In a...
Minimum wage earners can now take advantage of the government’s ₱20-per-kilo subsidized rice following its rollout in Manila led by the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel and Labor Secretary Bienvenido...
The Department of Agriculture (DA) is in support of a recommendation from a House of Representatives panel to revert the rice tariff rate from 15 percent to 35 percent—on the condition that this will be implemented gradually. During the final hearing of the House quinta committee on Wednesday,...
As the world grapples with the continued rise of plastic pollution across marine and freshwater ecosystems, developing economies such as the Philippines are ramping up the production of non-plastic alternatives, with seaweed as a major source. In its latest global trade update, the United Nations...
