NFA: No shortage, supply of NFA rice just low
NFA had already requested the importation of 250,000 metric tons of rice to fulfill the shortage as early November last year. But the request is yet to be approved. File
MANILA, Philippines — While there is no shortage of rice in the Philippines, the administrator of the National Food Authority admitted that the agency only has enough of the staple for 35 days.
“There is no rice shortage in the industry but NFA has low inventory,” NFA Administrator Jason Aquino said in English and Filipino in a press briefing Wednesday.
Aquino attributed the low supply of the affordable NFA rice to the high price of rice bought from farmers and eruptions on Mayon Volcano in Albay.
“We can't buy palay from our farmers since we're only offering P17 per kilogram. The farm gate price is P19 to P22,” he said.
“There is no shortage of rice, the price is just high. The NFA has nothing to give the poorest of the poor,” Grains Retailers’ Confederation of the Philippines president Jaime Magbanua also said.
The NFA administrator added that the agency is only distributing 34,000 bags of rice to the market instead of the usual 64,000 bags.
NFA had already requested the importation of 250,000 metric tons of rice to fulfill the shortage as early November last year. But the request has yet to be approved.
Aquino reportedly clashed with Cabinet Secretary Leoncio Evasco Jr. over the importation of rice last year. The issue led to the dismissal from service of an undersecretary with Evasco's office.
“Sabi ko, ‘Anong mukha ko na iharap ko sa farmers (I said ‘how do I face the farmers)? Why would we allow importation to compete with local product?’ Hanggang ngayon, hindi ko mabasa anong ginawa nilang rason (Until now, I cannot figure out their reason for doing that). Of course, hindi natuloy dahil binara ko (it did not push through because I stopped it),” President Rodrigo Duterte said in April 2017.
READ: Shortage of NFA rice raising prices
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque on Tuesday assured the public that the NFA rice situation is under control, quoting Evasco.
Sen. Cynthia Villar, chair of the Senate committee on agriculture, filed Resolution 608 on Wednesday, calling for a probe into the shortage of supply of NFA rice and a study for new policies that will ensure a stable rice supply.
Classes D and E are the major clients of the affordable NFA rice, which is being sold for P27 to P32 per kilogram.
Commercial rice costs P36 to P41 per kilogram.
READ: Philippines has enough rice supply – Palace
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