The Department of Agriculture yesterday denied reports of a rice shortage in the country even as the price of the staple grain ranged from P42 to P60 per kilo, way higher than the government’s “aspiration” of P20 per kilo.
On Tuesday, DA Undersecretary for the Rice Industry Leocadio Sebastian assured the House Committee on Appropriations, which is looking into the department’s budget for 2024, that there is enough rice.
He, however, did not cite figures about the rice buffer stock, or how many weeks’ worth of rice is available in the market or in storage to feed the over a hundred million Filipinos.
Sebastian also brushed off accusations that the supply and pricing of rice are being controlled by a cartel following a question by Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman on why the DA seeks to import rice if there’s no shortage and why its price is skyrocketing.
The DA official said the retail price of rice will stabilize at P45 to P46 per kilo by harvest time in September, considering that the farm gate price of palay is also purportedly stabilizing.
“Because of the higher cost of production and higher farm gate price, we expect it will stabilize at P45 to P46. That will be good for our farmers,” he said.
Sebastian explained that the high cost of imported rice coming into the country drives up the price of local rice.
Citing the campaign promise of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Lagman said, “It’s bad enough that the current price of rice is way above the campaign promise of P20 per kilo.”
DA Undersecretary Mercedita Sombilla explained that prices are rising because global prices are rising. She defended the need to import rice to increase the buffer stock before the next harvest season.