“Increase stocks with local rice.”
This was the directive of President Rodrigo Duterte to Agriculture Secretary Manny Piñol and National Food Authority (NFA) Administrator Jason Aquino during a meeting with the newly reorganized NFA Council.
The instruction came after the reinstatement of the NFA to the Department of Agriculture on April 17, 2018.
The President stressed that he wants warehouses filled up to the roof, emphasizing further that he’d rather see overstocks than go through another shortage of buffer stocks.
In addition, he made clear that he wants the warehouses filled with local rice.
“The President’s instruction is very clear and that is to buy from Filipino farmers first,” Piñol said adding that Duterte emphasized that the only time to export is when there’s insufficient stock from the local rice producers.
“He also instructed us to increase the buying price of rice to encourage farmers to sell to the government’s rice agency,” Piñol said.
NFA currently buys clean and dry rice at 14% moisture content for P17 per kilo but private companies pay as much as P18-P25 per kilo.
“We have identified the areas where buying price is cheapest and so we will start from there,” the Secretary said.
“Aside from increasing the buying price of rice, DA will establish drying facilities in strategic locations to help farmers in their drying needs and enable them to save on postharvest fees,” the agri chief said.
Piñol added that rice farmers who will be selling their harvest to NFA would be given priority to avail of a no-collateral and low-interest financial assistance under the Production Loan Easy Access credit program managed by the Agricultural Credit Policy Council.
Lastly, the Secretary pointed out that farmers’ associations who will deliver and sell their rice to NFA would be awarded postharvest facilities and equipment, based on a point-system scheme.
Under this measure, the group may be able to avail of a small tractor, a combine harvester, a kuliglig or even a Rice Processing Center, depending on the volume of rice delivered and sold to NFA.
In other news, Piñol announced that he would inhibit himself from any importation activities even as NFA has been returned to DA.
“I asked permission from the President and informed him that I don’t want to participate in any activities regarding importation to prevent any suspicion that I may be favoring any group. And so I have assigned Undersecretary Berna Romulo-Puyat for rice importation concerns,” he said.
NFA, alongside the Philippine Coconut Authority and the Fertilizer and Pesticide Authority were transferred back to DA on April 17, 2018, three years after it was devolved under the Office of the President by virtue of Executive Order 165. ### (Oda Rodriguez/DA-AFID)
