Pan de sal prices seen to drop

MANILA, Philippines - Consumers can expect lower prices of the Pinoy “Tasty” and Pinoy pan de sal this month as flour millers and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) have launched the cheaper Harinang Pinoy flour.

In a press conference yesterday, Trade Secretary Gregory Domingo said that starting Dec. 11, the cheaper Harinang Pinoy flour to be used specifically for the production of Pinoy Tasty and Pinoy Pan de sal, would be available for bakers at P750 per 25 kilogram (kg) bag, lower than other brands in the market which are priced between P800 to P900.

With Harinang Pinoy to be made available for bakers at a more affordable price, Domingo said the price of the 450-gram Pinoy “Tasty” would also go down to P37.50 from P38.50.

The 250-gram Pinoy pan de sal would likewise be sold at a lower P22.50 from its current price of P23.

Domingo said the move to launch the more affordable flour is intended to help consumers.

“We always want to help consumers as long as it can be sustained,” he said.

For her part, Trade undersecretary Zenaida Maglaya told reporters the introduction of Harinang Pinoy is also part of the flour millers corporate social responsibility.

The flour would made available at a subsidized price by local flour millers, the Chamber of Philippine Flour Millers and Philippine Association of Flour Millers (PAFMIL).

The local flour millers have committed to produce 20,000 to 30,000 bags of Harinang Pinoy this month.

The volume committed to be produced is equivalent to 900,000 loaves of Pinoy “Tasty” and 2.7 million 10-piece packs of Pinoy pandesal.

“Since it (Harinang Pinoy) is more affordable, bakers can sell Pinoy “Tasty” and Pinoy pan de sal at cheaper price,” Maglaya said.

She said that while prices of flour have not gone up, the price of wheat has risen at the start of December.

PAFMIL executive director Ricardo Pinca added that while Harinang Pinoy cost less, consumers are assured of its quality as it is fortified with Vitamin A and iron.